SC Sets Up Task Force on Students' Suicides in Educational Institutions

STUDENTS' MENTAL HEALTH CONCERNS

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The Supreme Court on Monday established a National Task Force (NTF) to address the growing concern of student suicides in higher educational institutions across India.

The decision came as the court noted a "disturbing pattern" of such incidents, highlighting the need for a comprehensive framework to prevent these tragedies.

A bench comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan issued the order while hearing an appeal from parents of two students who died by suicide at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Delhi, in 2023. The court directed Delhi Police to register an FIR based on the complaints filed by the families of the deceased students.

"The recurring instances of student suicides in higher educational institutions, including private educational institutions, serve as a grim reminder of the inadequacy and ineffectiveness of the existing legal and institutional framework in Addressing mental health concerns of students on campuses and to prevent the students from taking the extreme step of committing suicides,” the court stated in its order.