Tragedy strikes again at IIT Delhi as student suicides mount

Another death has shrouded the hallowed gates of the Indian Institute of Technology’s Delhi campus, where Yash Kumar reportedly hanged himself. This marks the fifth suicide at IIT Delhi since July 2023, adding to the concerning trend of campus suicides.

Kumar Yash, a Master of Science student in the Cognitive Science department, had been seeking support from on-campus counsellors to help cope with the intense academic pressure. According to police, his dormitory room was locked from the inside, requiring authorities and a friend to break in. “The room was closed from the inside, but his friend and IIT staff broke the door window to enter. He was then taken to IIT Hospital, where the doctor on duty declared him dead,” an officer reported.

Following this, the institute’s ambulance transported him to Safdarjung Hospital, where he was declared dead on arrival.

“No suicide note was recovered. Statements from friends have been recorded, and no foul play was suspected,” said an official. “On the morning of October 22, he visited IIT Hospital, where he scheduled an appointment with a psychiatrist for October 29.”

On October 23, Dean of Student Affairs BK Panigrahi expressed his condolences in a letter: “With a heavy heart, it is our unfortunate duty to inform you of the tragic and untimely demise of our student Yash Kumar, a resident of the Aravali hostel and a second-year MSc Cognitive Science student. Kumar was found in his room the previous night. The police have taken custody of his remains.”

Tragedy fatigue

Students on the Delhi campus report feeling desensitised by recurring tragedies. Many students feel the constant deaths have left them uneasy, with no time to process each tragedy before the next emerges.

“Even the last time there was a suicide, we did not get enough time to process anything happening on campus. The entire student fraternity came together for a couple of days, but then the death was pushed under the rug, and everyone returned to business as usual,” said a student from the Energy Sciences department, speaking anonymously.

The intense academic pressures are also seen as numbing students’ empathy for each other. “Everyone is occupied with projects, seminars, and placements, but no one wants to understand what’s going wrong here. To grasp the amount of stress we experience, you’d need to live on campus. We’re encouraged to sacrifice all our holidays and free time. Even students contribute to the problem, naming and shaming peers who don’t conform,” the student added.

Labs are open 24 hours a day, and with a constant stream of projects and assignments, students find little respite amid the campus’s high-pressure environment. With each tragedy, an air of unease lingers.

Kshitij Shinde, a second-year Mechanical Engineering student, noted that most students who take drastic steps are those unable to cope with academic stress. “The consensus is that students who take such steps struggle with the pressure of studying at an IIT and the heavy workload,” he said.

Satwik Garg, a second-year student from Energy Sciences, acknowledged that the institute had made attempts to improve student well-being. “After a protest, exams were reduced from three to two per day. Although counsellors are now available around the clock, stress levels remain high,” he said.

Among India’s IITs, Delhi ranks high in incidents of suicide, recording seven deaths since 2019, second only to Madras and Hyderabad, which each reported seven deaths. In 2023 alone, nine suicides have been recorded across IIT campuses, including three in Guwahati, two in Kanpur, two in Delhi, and one each at Banaras Hindu University-IIT and IIT Roorkee.

Caste angle

Earlier in February, Varad Nerkar, a final-year MTech student from the Other Backward Class (OBC) category, allegedly died by suicide, citing mental harassment while pursuing his course in the Polymer Science and Technology department.

Nerkar was set to graduate in May 2024, having secured a job with HFCL in Hyderabad, along with a CGPA of 8.9 out of 10. However, the pressure of not being able to complete his research project over two months took a toll on him. Reportedly, he had requested the Head of Department to change his mentor in August 2023. His parents have accused his mentors and guides of harassment, which they claim led to his death.

A survey conducted during 2019-20 by the Board of Student Publications (BSP) at IIT Delhi revealed pervasive caste-based discrimination, with many students, particularly from the Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST), and OBC communities, reporting adverse effects from casteist remarks.

The survey, which included 545 undergraduate participants, found that 75% of SC/ST/OBC students experienced negative impacts due to caste-related comments.

In contrast, 59% of General Category respondents either agreed with or remained neutral toward casteist comments, with half admitting to making such remarks—either knowingly or unintentionally. Notably, 15% acknowledged making casteist comments intentionally.

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A similar survey was conducted in 2023 at IIT Bombay. At IIT Delhi, 41% of students surveyed across all categories reported hearing casteist remarks on campus, with 11% stating they were aware of professors or administrative staff who had made such comments.

Additionally, it was reported that in 2023, the BSP sought to publish another survey on caste discrimination, which was subsequently taken down by the authorities.

Campus deaths 

IIT Delhi has witnessed several tragic incidents in the past year. In November 2023, Panav Jain, a 21-year-old final-year BTech student, allegedly died by suicide, citing academic stress.

In September 2023, Anil Kumar, a 20-year-old BTech student, also reportedly took his life due to academic pressures. Earlier, in July, another student, Ayush Ashna, reportedly died by suicide.

Authorities remain dumbfounded

Much like the students, who remain perplexed as to what is causing the deaths, the Dean of Student Affairs expressed that the recent tragedy has left the administration at a loss.

“With this death, we are unsure of what else we can do to improve things for the students. We have stationed counsellors at the hospital and at each hostel,” he said.

“We have also offered students access to off-campus counsellors and psychiatrists if they wish to make use of those resources. Yet, there has been another death on our grounds.”

Despite these efforts, the institute remains without an effective strategy, especially concerning the welfare of both General Category and marginalised students.