Student Suicides In IITs: Discussion On Academic Pressure And Caste Bias

At the India Today Mumbai Conclave 2026, experts examined the recurring issue of student suicides across Indian Institutes of Technology, in the wake of the death of IIT Bombay student Sahil Wakhade. Panellists debated whether systemic caste-based discrimination or intense academic stress and mental health challenges represent the core factor behind these tragedies. Discussion centred on official data highlighting student distress, including findings from a Supreme Court task force. The dialogue also addressed structural challenges within premier engineering institutions, such as rising student diversity, shifting coaching patterns, inadequate higher education funding, and deteriorating faculty-to-student ratios across campuses nationwide.