New Delhi [India], March 24 : The Supreme Court on Monday set up a National Task Force to address students' mental health concerns and prevent suicides in higher educational institutions.
A bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and R Mahadevan said the National Task Force to be headed by apex court's former judge Justice S Ravindra Bhat and noted that student suicides have surpassed instances of farmers killing themselves due to agrarian distress.
It also directed Delhi Police to register an FIR on the complaints of the family members of two students who died by suicide while studying at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Delhi, in 2023.
"The recurring instances of student suicides in higher educational institutions, including private educational institutions, serve as a grim reminder of the inadequacy and ineffectiveness of the existing legal and institutional framework in addressing mental health concerns of students on campuses and to prevent the students from taking the extreme step of committing suicides," the apex court stated in its order.
The top court said the NTF would prepare a comprehensive report that includes, identification of the predominant causes that lead to suicides by students, analysis of existing regulations and recommendations for strengthening protections.
The NTF would have the authority to conduct surprise inspections of any higher educational institution, it said.
"Additionally, the task force shall be at liberty to make further recommendations beyond the specified mandate, wherever necessary, to ensure a holistic and effective approach towards addressing mental-health concerns of students and eliminating the incidence of suicides in higher educational institutions," the order added.
While the NTF would furnish an interim report within four months, a final report would preferably be filed within eight months, it said.
The order of the top court came on an appeal filed by the parents of two deceased students of IIT-Delhi against a January 2024 order of the Delhi High Court which refused to direct the police to register an FIR in connection with the suicide by the two students.
Ayush Ashna was found dead on July 8, 2023, in his hostel room, and Anil Kumar was found dead on September 1, 202,3 in his hostel room at IIT-Delhi.
It was alleged that both the students, who belonged to the scheduled castes, were murdered and they had earlier confided in their parents being subjected to caste discrimination.