PANJIM, May 2 -- Ajit John

On Thursday, a 20-year-old student at BITS Pilani's Goa campus was found dead in his hostel room. It was the third such incident on the campus in just five months, sparking the question: What is driving students to such extremes?

Psychologists and counsellors point to two factors - academic performance and parental expectations - as key contributors to a growing mental health crisis among students. "With rapidly evolving curricula and fierce competition for jobs, students are under constant pressure to perform," said Ciprian Fernandes, a youth counsellor at NS College, Vasco. "When they face setbacks, they tend to buckle under pressure. They're not emotionally mature yet. Older adults might say 'this too shall...