Purely quantitative expansion without any adequate framework of institutional support has left students vulnerable as the repeated cases of tragedies on campuses directly prove, the Supreme Court observed. | Photo credit: The Hindu
The Supreme Court observed that the “massification” and “privatisation” of higher education had placed India second in the world’s student population, but the rush had left a trail of death, anxiety, chronic vacancies and exploitation.
A bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and R Mahadevan, invoking the court’s plenary powers under Article 142 of the Constitution, issued a series of directions in a 38-page order, including that faculty vacancies in both public and private universities (HEs) must be filled within four months. In practice, the appointment of vice-chancellors and recorders must be carried out within one month of the vacancy.
The backlog of scholarship payments must be cleared by the relevant central and state government authorities within four months. The payment of future scholarships should have clear timetables, the court ordered.
It said the number of students collapsing under pressure to take their own lives had reached “epidemic” proportions, even though the National Education Policy 2020 set an ambitious target of 50% of gross enrollment by 2035.
Purely quantitative expansion without any adequate institutional support framework has left students vulnerable as the repeated cases of tragedies on campuses directly demonstrate, the court observed.
Students who interacted with the Supreme Court Appointed National Task Force (NTF) during the survey shared the view that “extremely rigid attendance policies, overwork and unplanned phasing/scheduling of academic curriculum, examination assessment methodologies, teacher shortages, teacher vacancies, over-reliance on inexperienced guest placement processes” teachers’ mental stress or lack of transparency affect their health.
Medical students spoke of an entrenched, borderline exploitative academic culture associated with stretching on-call hours well beyond the prescribed limit – up to 36 to 48 hours at a time. Engineering students highlighted the intense nature of academic expectations, which are heavily influenced by placements and pay packages.
The court said it was high time to look at the submerged parts of the “iceberg of student distress”.
“Universities cannot shirk their fundamental duty to ensure that their institutions as a whole are a safe, fair, inclusive and welcoming space for learning,” the court said.
The NTF found that approximately 65% ​​of institutions currently do not provide access to mental health service providers. The court ordered that residential universities must provide access to qualified medical assistance 24 hours a day, if not on campus, then within a radius of one kilometer to provide emergency medical support to students.
In its directions, the court directed that “Sample Registration System” data on suicides, especially those falling in the age group of 15-29 years, must be centrally maintained for better and more accurate estimates of suicides among college students. The National Crime Records Bureau’s annual report should distinguish between school students and college students in its categorization of “student suicides”.
All colleges must report any incident of student suicide or unnatural death of students, irrespective of where it occurs, whether in the campus, hostels, PG accommodation or otherwise outside the premises of the institution, to the police as soon as they come to know about the incident.
“The Union of India and the State Governments shall ensure that the directions we give are communicated to all colleges across the country as soon as possible and appropriate action is taken in this regard,” the Supreme Court ordered.
Published – 18 Jan 2026 19:53 IST