E-Paper
40 student suicides reported in JNVs in last 5 years: Centre
NVS is an autonomous organization under the Union ministry of education, which manages over 650 residential JNVs across India except Tamil Nadu with enrollment of over 3.10 lakh students
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A total of 40 cases of student suicides have been reported in Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNVs) over the last five years between 2021 and 2025 and the current year 2026 so far, with Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh recording the highest number of cases at five each, followed by Bihar, Karnataka, Kerala, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh with three cases each, the central government told the Lok Sabha on Monday.
Responding to Congress MP Kodikunnil Suresh’s questions on suicide cases in JNVs and corrective measures to address student mental health, minister of state (MoS) for education Jayant Chaudhary said Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti (NVS) has conducted fact-finding inquiries into all student suicide cases through duly constituted inquiry committees. “Based on the findings of these committees, the major causes are: family-related issues; examination and academic pressure; high levels of ambition or parental high expectations; adolescent behavioural concerns ; and mental health-related issues,” he added.
NVS is an autonomous organization under the Union ministry of education, which manages over 650 residential JNVs across India except Tamil Nadu with enrollment of over 3.10 lakh students. At least 75% of the seats in a district where JNVs are located, are filled by candidates selected from rural areas based on their scores in a national-level test.
The data on cases of student suicides in JNVs, shared by Choudhary shows a rise in cases from 2 in 2021 to a peak of 12 in 2024, before declining to 8 in 2025 and 3 so far in 2026. The state- and district-wise data indicates that the cases are spread across multiple regions, including Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, among others.
Choudhary highlighted various initiatives and actions being taken by the central government to provide support for mental health of students in JNVs. He said Union education ministry recently held a “hig-level meeting” which was attended by a senior psychologist and principals of identified JNVs where suicide cases happened. NCERT faculties and NVS officials also joined the meeting “to analyse the suicide cases in JNVs.”
“National Centre for School Leadership of National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration (NIEPA) also conducts capacity development workshops for principals of JNVs on mental health and social emotional wellbeing of students, from time to time,” he added.
Chaudhary said several measures have been put in place to address mental health concerns among JNV students. These include the engagement of both male and female counsellors in each school, provision of tele-counselling services, and authorisation for principals to seek support from professional counsellors at government hospitals. Teachers, who perform loco-parenting roles, are trained in guidance and counselling, with additional in-service programmes for house masters, while some are also nominated for a one-year diploma course in counselling conducted by NCERT.
He added that a task force constituted by the ministry in 2018 to strengthen psychosocial support led to further initiatives, including a toll-free helpline 1800-180-7992 for students and the introduction of “Happy Hours” to promote positive interaction and emotional well-being. Additionally, 50–60 teachers are nominated every year for specialised counselling training to further enhance student support systems.
