NEW DELHI: The mounting pressure of exams on a 17-year-old boy led to his death as he died by suicide in his home, while his parents went to attend the parents-teacher meeting at his school, said a senior police official on Friday.
The student hanged himself from a ceiling fan in southwest Delhi’s Safdarjung area on Friday morning, police said.
“The deceased child was a student of class 12. As his performance was not good in the previous CBSE exam, he was concerned about the upcoming exams,” said a police official. According to the locals, the mother of the deceased is a nurse, while his father is recently retired from the paramilitary forces.
The deceased was the youngest and the only son of the family. A relative of the family said that the boy was alone at his house and his parents had gone to his school to attend PTM.
“At around 9:30 am when his parents returned from school, they found their child hanging from the ceiling fan,” the relative added. He added that the boy was fun-loving and respectful towards people. “The boy had never told his family that he was this anxious about the exams that could lead him to end his life in this way,” said Yeshpal, a neighbour of the family.
As anxiety is common among students during exam periods, a toll-free YUVA phone line is being run at SCERT, Delhi with the objective of providing support to adolescents, teachers and parents.
Aparjita Gautam, the president of the Delhi Teachers and Parents Association said that the role of parents become significant at this time as most of the students prepare for exams at their home.
“Apart from nutrition for the body, the parents should also look into the emotional balance of the students, and also give them a break from study to absorb the exam pressure,” added Aparjita.
The CBSE exams for classes 10 and 12 commenced on February 15. The class 10 exams will end on March 21, and the Class 12 exams will conclude on April 5.
(If you are having suicidal thoughts, or are worried about a friend or need emotional support, someone is always there to listen. Call Sneha Foundation - 04424640050 (available 24x7) or iCall, the Tata Institute of Social Sciences' helpline - 02225521111, which is available Monday to Saturday from 8 am to 10 pm.)