NEET Aspirant From Bihar Dies By Suicide In Kota, Third Such Death In Four Days

A 17-year-old NEET aspirant from Bihar was found dead in his room, in a possible case of suicide in Kota, Rajasthan.

The boy, identified only by his first name, Navlesh, allegedly hanged himself in his PG accommodation in Krishna Vihar in Landmark City late Thursday.

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Frustrated over performance

Navlesh a native of Patna city was a Class 12 student and had been preparing for the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET-UG) for over a year in the coaching hub.

In a suicide note found in his room, the boy mentioned study-related stress and frustration over not performing well in routine tests at his coaching centre for his step, Kunhari police station SHO Ganga Sahay Sharma said.

Third suicide this week

This is the third student suicide being reported in Kota in four days.

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On Wednesday, Dhanesh Kumar Sharma (15), a resident of Bulandshahr district in UP, was found hanging from the ceiling fan in his hostel room in the same area. On Monday, Mohammed Nasid (22), from Bengaluru, took his life by jumping off the 10th floor of a building in Vigyan Nagar.

Nasid had appeared for the NEET-UG 2023 at a centre in Jaipur on Sunday and returned to Kota the next day. He had been preparing for the medical entrance test at a coaching institute in Kota for the last one year.

Nasid lived with his friends in the multi-storey building and his roommates were not present when the incident occurred.

Kota's suicide problem

Kota, known as the hub of competitive exam coaching, has a long history of such student deaths.

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In 2023 so far, at least ten student deaths have been reported in Kota.

Last month, the Child Welfare Committee of Rajasthan had rescued a 17-year-old NEET aspirant after he attempted suicide twice.

The boy, a resident of Bihar's Darbhanga, was trying to jump off the third floor of a building on Vishvakarma Road, where he was a paying guest, but his batchmates rushed to his rescue and stopped him.

Later, the teenager tried slitting his wrist to kill himself, following which the PG owner reported the matter to the CWC.

What is killing students in Kota

Thanks to its reputation as a competitive exam coaching hub, students from several states come to Kota to prepare for entrance tests of medical and engineering colleges.

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Over 2.25 lakh students are estimated to be enrolled in coaching centres in the city in this session.

The coaching centres in Kota have long faced accusations of overburdening students to get them to clear the exams without focusing on their mental and physical well-being.

In most student deaths, the common reason was being unable to cope with academic pressure and fear of failing their exams.

If you know anyone battling with depression or other mental health issues, please reach out to someone who can help.

AASRA Foundation: 022 2754 6669

Samaritans Mumbai: +91 84229 84528 / +91 84229 84529 / +91 84229 84530

Sanjivini Society for Mental Health: +911124311918

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