Maharashtra tops country in student suicides, NCRB data shows 1,909 deaths in 2024
Maharashtra recorded 1,909 student suicides in 2024, 13.2 per cent of the national total of 14,488, the latest NCRB figures show.
Nagpur: Maharashtra is first in the country for student suicides, according to the latest data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). The past ten years have shown a worrying rise in student deaths.
According to the NCRB report "Accidental Deaths and Suicides in India 2024", 14,488 students died by suicide across the country in 2024, the highest figure between 2014 and 2024. In 2014, 8,068 cases were recorded, an increase of 79.6 per cent.
Maharashtra accounted for the largest share of the national total in 2024. Here 1,909 students died by suicide, 13.2 per cent of all such deaths. Uttar Pradesh was second with 1,585 cases, Madhya Pradesh third with 1,447 and Tamil Nadu fourth with 1,287. Together, these four states accounted for about 43 per cent of the student suicides recorded across the country in 2024.
The longer-term picture is just as worrying. According to NCRB data, 1,23,918 cases of student suicide were recorded in the country between 2014 and 2024. An analysis of the data shows Maharashtra accounted for about 17,000 of the cases in these 11 years.
The problem is not confined to colleges and universities. In 2024, more than 10,000 suicide deaths of people under 18 were recorded. This indicates that schoolchildren are as vulnerable as older students.
Family problems a major cause
When student suicides are discussed, academic pressure and failure in examinations come up most often. But the NCRB data show the causes are far more varied.
Family problems were the biggest recorded cause of suicide across the country in 2024. Failure in examinations has been linked to 2,032 student deaths. It is an important cause, but not the only one. Illness, addiction, relationship issues, career and professional problems and financial difficulty are also among the recorded causes.
The sharpest jump in ten years came between 2019 and 2020, when the number rose 21.2 per cent. In the 2014 to 2024 series, only 2022 saw the figure dip slightly from the previous year.
Greater pressure on Maharashtra
Maharashtra's situation is notable because it has several large education and competitive-examination centres, including Pune and Mumbai. A research paper examining the NCRB data has also pointed to the persistently high burden of student suicides in Maharashtra. It says more attention is needed on examination-related deaths, and also cautions about the limitations of NCRB data.
The figures have turned attention again to the mental health of students struggling with academic competition, family expectations and uncertainty about studies and careers. Experts and policymakers have repeatedly said prevention cannot rest on examination stress alone, as the causes recorded in official data are many.
Government steps for prevention
The Centre has taken steps at several levels to prevent suicides, including psychological support for students, teachers and families. The National Suicide Prevention Strategy, launched in 2022, aims to reduce the country's suicide death rate by 10 per cent by 2030.
The Ministry of Education has also issued guidelines to regulate coaching centres and started initiatives to give students academic and emotional support.
Even so, the latest figures show the depth of the challenge, especially for Maharashtra, which records the highest number of student suicide deaths in the country.
