A 17-year-old student, preparing for Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) to get admission to any engineering course, died by suicide in Rajasthan’s Kota district on Sunday, marking the first such incident in the coaching hub this year.
Last year, at least 18 students died by suicide in Kota along with one each in Sikar and Jodhpur while another 20 students also died in Kota in 2024.
SHO Udhyog Nagar police station, Jitendra Singh, said: “The incident took place at around 8.30 pm on Sunday night at the Delhi-Mumbai railway track in Udhyog Nagar. He jumped before a train on the track.”
According to police, the student was a resident of Haryana’s Sirsa. He arrived in Kota two years ago for JEE preparation and had been staying in a hostel in Rajeev Gandhi Nagar.
“On Sunday night, he was supposed to return to his village. In his last phone call, he informed his parents that his train was three hours late. Soon after this call, he reached the station and jumped before a train,” said the SHO.
Kota is the centre of India’s test-prep business, estimated to be worth ₹10,000 crore annually, according to officials in the district administration. Students from around the country arrive here in huge numbers after completing Class X, and register in residential test-prep institutes. They also enrol in schools, most of which are largely for purposes of certification.
{{/usCountry}}Kota is the centre of India’s test-prep business, estimated to be worth ₹10,000 crore annually, according to officials in the district administration. Students from around the country arrive here in huge numbers after completing Class X, and register in residential test-prep institutes. They also enrol in schools, most of which are largely for purposes of certification.
{{/usCountry}}Students attend classes only in the test-prep institutes, which prepare them for their Class XII examination, but more importantly, entrance examinations such as NEET and Joint Entrance Examination (JEE).
Discussing suicides can be triggering for some. However, suicides are preventable. A few major suicide prevention helpline numbers in India are 011-23389090 from Sumaitri (Delhi-based) and 044-24640050 from Sneha Foundation (Chennai-based).