Archive · 23 Sep 2026
IITs Report 45 Suicides Among 53 Student Deaths
Official information says that 53 students died across 23 IITs over five academic years.
Forty-five of these deaths were recorded as suicides.
Eight other deaths were listed separately as unnatural deaths.
Students from SC, ST and OBC communities accounted for 28 suicides and 29 deaths overall.
The number of deaths rose greatly in the last two years.
There were 19 total deaths in 2024-25, including 13 suicides and six unnatural deaths.
Academics and faculty members suggested that pressure, loneliness, limited contact with teachers and inclusion problems may have contributed.
However, the official data does not describe each student’s circumstances.
Therefore, the numbers alone cannot prove why the deaths happened.
Twenty-three IITs reported 45 student suicides between 2020-21 and 2024-25.
SC, ST and OBC students accounted for 28 suicides and 29 of all 53 reported deaths.
Deaths increased from five in 2020-21 to 17 in 2023-24 and 19 in 2024-25.
IIT Hyderabad recorded the most suicides, while IIT Kharagpur, Delhi and Kanpur recorded six each.
The data separately lists eight unnatural deaths but does not establish the circumstances or causes of the deaths.
- Who
- Students at 23 Indian Institutes of Technology, including students from SC, ST, OBC, General and EWS categories.
- What
- Fifty-three student deaths were reported, comprising 45 suicides and eight separately recorded unnatural deaths.
- When
- During the 2020-21 through 2024-25 academic years; the data was compiled for a provisionally admitted Lok Sabha starred question dated December 8, 2025.
- Where
- Across Indian Institutes of Technology in India; the highest suicide total was reported at IIT Hyderabad.
- Why
- Academics and faculty members cited academic pressure, social isolation, limited faculty-student engagement and inclusion-related structural issues, but the official data does not establish the causes.
Possible Contributing Factors
Data-Based Caution
Reasons for the increase
Possible Contributing Factors
Academics and faculty members linked the rise in suicides to academic pressure, social isolation, limited faculty-student engagement and structural inclusion issues.
Data-Based Caution
The official compilation does not provide course-level information or details about the circumstances, so the reported figures cannot establish why the deaths occurred.
Interpreting community representation
Possible Contributing Factors
SC, ST and OBC students accounted for 28 of 45 suicides and 29 of all 53 reported deaths, showing that these communities represented a substantial share of the reported figures.
Data-Based Caution
The two figures measure different groups: 28 counts only suicides, while 29 includes all reported deaths, including the eight separately recorded unnatural deaths.
- Total reported deaths
- 53 students
- Recorded suicides
- 45
- Separately recorded unnatural deaths
- Eight
- SC, ST and OBC suicides
- 28: 12 OBC, nine SC and seven ST students
- SC, ST and OBC deaths overall
- 29, or 54.7% of all reported deaths
- Deaths in 2024-25
- 19 total deaths, including 13 suicides and six unnatural deaths
- Highest suicide total
- IIT Hyderabad, with seven suicides
- Data source
- Information submitted by IITs for Lok Sabha Provisionally Admitted Starred Diary No. 3682
