IIT Bombay professor faces backlash for claiming student suicides are 'not alarming' as they are below national average
Basudev Biswal, a professor at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT B), recently stirred up controversy on LinkedIn by asserting that the statistics surrounding student suicides may not be as alarming as they seem, claiming they are actually below the national average. His remarks come in the wake of a tragic incident on October 10, when a 28-year-old PhD student at the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, Pragati Kharya, took her own life, marking the fourth such case in the past year, according to police reports.
Taking to LinkedIn, Biswal asserts that "115 students have committed suicide in the past 20 years across all IITs," which breaks down to approximately six suicides per year for every one lakh students enrolled in these prestigious institutions.?
To put this in perspective, he writes that the national average for suicides stands at 11 per one lakh individuals, suggesting that IITs have a lower rate of student suicides than the overall population.
Biswal further references research published in PubMed Central, which highlights a troubling phenomenon: suicidal behavior can be contagious.?
The research finds that the media coverage of suicides, especially when it includes specific details about the method used or involves celebrity cases, can lead to an increase in subsequent suicides.?
"Irresponsible reporting of suicides only pushes more people closer to suicide," Biswal argues, criticising sensational headlines like "A wake-up call for the nation!" as unhelpful for those in distress.
He emphasises the importance of understanding the underlying psychological factors that contribute to suicide.?
According to a report from the National Crime Records Bureau, the top five reasons for suicides in India are family problems (23.7%), illness (21%), which includes mental health issues, love affairs (2.9%), sudden economic changes (2.5%), and drug abuse (2.3%).?
By focusing on these root causes rather than sensationalising the statistics, Biswal advocates for a more thoughtful approach to addressing this critical issue.
How did people respond?
Biswal's views have sparked significant backlash among many.?
On Reddit, a thread critiques his apparent oversimplification of the issue.?
This IITB prof thinks that suicide among students is not a matter of concern as it is lower than the national average
byu/Last-Society8677 inBtechtards
One user expresses frustration, stating, "Apathy is real in India, I hate how we play and use these numbers to justify something. These numbers represent the life of someone."
Another user raises a poignant question, "So we only care when a death becomes a statistic?"
Additionally, a commenter points out a critical flaw in the statistics: "The stats count it only if it happens inside the campus, they aren't counting what happens outside it."
One adds, "IITs are the best institute in this country; if students are dying even in that place then something is wrong."
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