Mumbai, Dec. 18 -- Young people in Maharashtra are emerging as the country's largest users of digital mental health services, reflecting growing emotional distress, academic pressure and suicide-related concerns among adolescents and young adults, according to new data from iCALL, the Tata Institute of Social Sciences' (TISS) psychosocial helpline. Data from iCALL's platforms shows that those aged 12 to 25 form the largest group seeking support. Maharashtra alone accounts for 14%, the largest percentage nationwide, of all users on ReYou, iCALL's suicide-prevention chat service. Uttar Pradesh follows with 9.5%, Delhi with 8.5%, West Bengal with 7% and Karnataka with 6%. Launched in March 2023, ReYou is a real-time, chat-based suicide prevention service designed for young adults aged 18 to 24. Since its launch, it has handled over 10,300 chat sessions till October 2025, averaging about 325 sessions a month, with demand rising steadily year after year. Nearly one in five conversations on ReYou, or 21.5%, were crisis-related, involving suicidal ideation or a high risk of self-harm. Among these, suicidal thoughts were the most common concern, while emotional distress dominated non-crisis interactions. A similar trend has emerged on iCALL's Child and Adolescent Mental Health Programme Support (CHAMPS), a toll-free phone helpline operational since 2023. Across both platforms, emotional distress emerged as the most frequently reported issue. On CHAMPS, it accounted for 39.37% of calls, followed by non-suicidal self-injury at 9.79%, relationship-related concerns at 5.68%, suicidal ideation at 3.4%, education and career stress at 3.05% and experiences of violence at 3.32%. Counsellors said younger children often spoke about school-related difficulties, while adolescents reported mounting pressure from academics, family expectations and interpersonal relationships, as well as grief linked to friendship losses. "If you look at suicide data among young people, family conflict and career-related aspirations and realisations are major stressors," said Dr Aparna Joshi, assistant professor at the School of Human Ecology TISS, associated with iCALL. Joshi added that the rise in help-seeking must also be seen as a result of greater access and awareness. "Over the last three years, as awareness has increased through social media, more young people have begun reaching out," Joshi said. An iCALL team member explained, "We first welcome the user and inform them that it may take two to three minutes to get connected to a mental health professional. Despite this, call volumes across our youth services have increased steadily over time." Mental health professionals noted that language and access play a key role in who seeks help. While ReYou operates in English and has seen higher uptake in urbanised states such as Maharashtra, Delhi and Karnataka, CHAMPS is multilingual and phone-based, allowing it to reach a wider population....