20-yr-old NEET aspirant dies by suicide in Tamil Nadu over fear of failure

Afraid over the result of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET), Keerthivasan, a 20-year old medical aspirant allegedly died by suicide in Coimbatore district of Tamil Nadu. Keerthivasan, a resident of Kinathukadavu had appeared for the entrance exam held in September for the third time, the results of which are expected in a couple of days.

He had appeared for the test in 2019 and 2020, but could not clear. So he tried his luck for the third time this year. Speaking to reporters, official said that with National Testing Agency publishing the answer key, the youth was said to be upset and told his parents that he may not be able to clear the test this year also.

Despite the advice from his parents to wait for the final results, Keerthivasan allegedly consumed pesticides on Friday afternoon. He was rushed to Pollachi Government hospital, where he later succumbed.

Notably, this is the fifth NEET-related death in the state this year. Earlier in September, three aspirants ended their lives within five days. On September 11, a day before the exam, 20-year-old Dhanush from Salem killed himself. . The boy was found hanging in his house by his mother.

On September 13 — Kanimozhi, a 17-year-old from Ariyalur district, killed herself. On September 15, a 17-year-old student, Soundharya T, killed herself after appearing for the NEET exam. She reportedly told her family that the paper was tough and she could not perform well in the exam. She feared she wouldn’t clear the NEET exam and had been depressed since the exam.