Depression rising among youth; engineering students worst hit, says report

(Image for representational purposes only)

New Delhi: The world on social media witnessed the suicide of 23-year-old Arjun Bharadwaj, an engineering student in one of India's most prestigious colleges in Mumbai.

Bharadwaj broadcasted his suicide live on Facebook and left people completely shocked.

The comments on his video showed varied reactions. While some sent condolences and were saddened by his final act, there were those who didn't hold back and resorted to a lot of name-calling.

The incident has once again brought the subject of depression-induced student suicide deaths to the fore, with mental health experts saying how teenagers comprise majority of those who take the extreme step.

With the World Health Organisation (WHO) declaring depression as the leading cause of ill health and disability, the incident has also led experts to associate it with the rising cases of depression among the younger crowd, adding that it is one of the primary reasons why they commit suicide.

"In Hyderabad, many engineering students tend to have psychotic symptoms or bipolar disorder, which leads to depression. It is not just pressure to perform better but also anxiety , bullying in educational institutions among other reasons that pushes many students into depression," said Dr Daljeet Kaur, consultant psychiatrist at Continental Hospitals, adding that people who plan to take the drastic step often start showing signs like mood swings, difficulty in socialising or even over-socialising, a report in the Times of India (TOI) said.

As per the National Crime Records Bureau's 2014 data, nearly 41 percent suicides were committed by people between the age of 14 and 30.

Experts attribute this unhealthy trend -unfortunately on the rise - 'stress of trying to fit in' among students, the report stated.

Mental health experts also cited lack of support as a factor which contributed towards depression, besides loneliness, relationship problems, unemployment etc.