Kota student suicide: The 17-year-old hanged himself in his hostel room.
Highlights
- The student was found hanging at his hostel room on Tuesday
- No suicide note has been found, police said
- Since 2011, more than 50 students have committed suicide in Kota
A 17-year-old has committed suicide in Rajasthan's Kota, known for its numerous coaching centres prepping students for the highly competitive entrance exams for engineering and medical institutes. This is the third suicide in the city over the last five days.
The teen, preparing for the admission to premier Indian Institutes of Technology, was found hanging at his hostel room on Tuesday. The body was found by his cousin, who is also enrolled at a coaching centre, reported news agency ANI, quoting police sources.
The boy's parents, who live in Bihar's Sivan, had asked his cousin to check on him when he did not respond to their phone calls.
No suicide note has been found, the police said. The body will be sent for postmortem examination once the family arrives.
On December 24, a medical aspirant from Kushinagar, Uttar Pradesh, allegedly committed suicide in her hostel room. No suicide note was found there either and the matter is being investigated.
A 16-year-old from Rajasthan's Bundi killed himself on December 22.
The suicides once again highlight the enormous pressure the students prepping for competitive exams are under; and Kota, a town 250 km from state capital Jaipur, once known for its crisp cotton sarees, has become the hub of coaching centres prepping aspirants.
Around 1.5 lakh students study in the 150-odd coaching centres of the city, enrolling in Class 11 and spending the next two years gathering knowhow.
Since 2011, more than 50 students have committed suicide in Kota.
To address the problem, a senior administrative official wrote an open letter to parents two years ago, asking them not to "force their expectations and dreams on their children".