The Supreme Court on Monday said the "relentless pressure" to perform in a purely score-based education system and the "extreme competition" for limited seats in premier educational institutions put a "terrifying burden" on students' mental health.

A bench of Justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan was cognisant of the rising incidents of student suicides on college campuses and in higher educational institutions when it said it was high time to formulate comprehensive guidelines to mitigate the underlying causes contributing to such students' distress.

"Universities must acknowledge their role not just as centres of learning but as institutions responsible for the well-being and holistic development of their students," the bench said.

The court went on, "The failure to do so would mean failing the very purpose of education to uplift, empower, and transform lives." The bench constituted a National Task Force (NTF) to address the mental health concerns of students and prevent incidents of suicides and said the duty of colleges was not just to ensure academic excellence of the students but also their mental well-being.

Similarly, the court expected them not to just exercise authority and control over students but also provide support in times of distress.

The bench said the nation had already suffered the tragic loss of numerous students -- young individuals with immense potential who could have gone on to become successful professionals.

"However, due to the absence of adequate institutional support, they were driven to take the extreme step of ending their own lives. These distressing incidents not only highlight systemic failures but also expose a severe lack of institutional empathy and accountability on the part of educational institutions," it said.

When academic environments failed to address discrimination, harassment and mental health concerns effectively, the court said, they contributed to a culture of neglect, having devastating consequences.

Referring to some incidents of suicide by students, the bench said these were not isolated one-off occurrences but were only a few out of the many which had taken place over a period of time owing to a multitude of reasons like ragging, academic pressure, caste-based discrimination, sexual harassment etc.

According to the 210th report of the Law Commission of India, suicide was identified as one of the most significant factors contributing to the premature and unnatural cessation of human life, it added.

The bench said the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report for the year 2021 highlights the grim reality of over 13,000 students having lost their lives by committing suicide in the country which is almost twice the already disturbing number a decade ago.

According to the NCRB report titled student suicides accounted for 7.6 per cent of the total suicides in India in 2022 with 1.2 per cent of total suicides attributable to professional or career problems whereas 1.2 per cent to failure in examination.

News reports said to have showed caste-based discrimination being rampant and pervasive, even in prestigious educational institutions, aggravating the sense of alienation among students from marginalised communities.

"Caste-based discrimination on college campuses is in clear violation of Article 15 of the Constitution which inter alia prohibits discrimination on the ground of caste," it said.

The bench said, "The relentless pressure to perform in a purely score-based education system, coupled with the extreme competition for limited seats in premier educational institutions, places a terrifying burden on the students' mental health." The court said universities assumed the role of a parent when a student left home and came to study on their campuses.

"As per the principle of 'loco parentis' when a student at the adolescent age or childhood is sent to school by the parents, it is also the duty of the school authorities to play the role of parents in safeguarding the interest and welfare of the students," the bench said.

Former apex court judge Justice S Ravindra Bhat would be the chairperson of NTF, which will also have Dr Alok Sarin, consultant psychiatrist of Sitaram Bhartia Institute of Science and Research, New Delhi, as one of its members.

The bench said the NTF includes representatives from diverse fields to ensure an interdisciplinary approach to tackling the issue of commission of suicides in higher educational institutions.

The bench directed the Centre to deposit Rs 20 lakh with the registry within two weeks as an outlay for the initial operations of the NTF.

The directions came on an appeal filed by the parents of two deceased students 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.

It 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.