No End to Student Suicides in Rajasthan’s Kota: Bihar Teenager Preparing for JEE Ends Life

Kota: The tragic trend of student suicides in Rajasthan’s coaching hub, Kota, continues unabated. A young boy from Bihar, who was preparing for the engineering entrance exams JEE Main and Advanced, allegedly took his own life in his rented room between Wednesday night and Thursday morning, according to officials.

The student has been identified as 16-year-old Sandeep Kumar from Nalanda district in Bihar. He was living in a rented room in the Mahavir Nagar Third area, where he took this drastic step. The police did not find any suicide note at the scene.

Mahavir Nagar police station officer Mahendra Maru reported that they received information about the student’s death in his rented room. A police team quickly arrived at the location, took the body into custody, and sent it for a post-mortem examination.

The police revealed that Sandeep had been studying for the JEE Main and Advanced exams at a coaching institute in Kota for the past year. His brother, Sanjeet, is also in Kota, preparing for the medical entrance exam NEET UG, and was staying in the Dadabari area. Sanjeet rushed to the scene upon hearing the news. Both of their parents had passed away five years ago, and their uncle had been taking care of them.

Other students in the building mentioned that the light in Sandeep’s room was on late into the night. When they looked through the skylight, they saw him lying motionless and immediately informed the landlord, who then called the police.

Anti-suicide Rod Not Installed: The police noted that the mandatory anti-suicide rod, which should be installed on ceiling fans as per government regulations, was not present in Sandeep’s room.

The landlord, Mahendra, said that Sandeep had gone to his room after having dinner at around 9:30 pm. On Wednesday, Sandeep’s uncle had also deposited money into his account, according to the landlord. The police have started an investigation into the incident.

Suicide is not a solution: If you are experiencing suicidal thoughts, are concerned about a friend, or need emotional support, help is available. Call the Sneha Foundation at 04424640050 (available 24x7) or iCall, the Tata Institute of Social Sciences’ helpline, at 9152987821 (available Monday to Saturday from 8 am to 10 pm).