Inconsolable parents of 18-year-old Akshay are finding it hard to come to terms with the death of their only son. 

Depressed over his poor performance in the class 12 examinations, this 18-year-old boy of Modern School in Noida committed suicide. Akshay hanged himself leaving behind a suicide note in which he apologised for not being able to make his parents happy.

Police say Akshay, a class 12 student was bad at Maths but was under pressure from his parents to pursue the subject. In fact he had changed his school recently, after he did badly in his Class 11 exams. 

"He had scored 48 in Maths in his Class 10 exams and then he had opted for commerce with maths," said S V Sharma, Prinicipal, Bal Vidya Bhawan.

The Health Ministry says over 16,000 students in India have committed suicide in the last three years.

These are disturbing figures that come at a time of growing stress, increased competition and the pressure to live up to parental expectations.

On Tuesday, a Class 11 student in Vadodara attempted suicide for doing badly in her exams.

And in UP, 16 students killed themselves within 4 days of the Board exams results being declared. Some of them had failed, others scored less.

"There has been an increase in the number of students seeking help just before and after results. Parents need to realise that a child may not have the emotional maturity but as a parent they are supposed to handle the situation better," says Bhawna Burni, Psychiatrist, Escorts Hospital.

Doctors say parents need to watch out for early warning signs of depression among children and not put too much pressure on them.