A 23-year-old IIT-Hyderabad student allegedly died by suicide this morning
New Delhi:
A rash of suicides has shaken the campuses of the Indian Institute of Technology or IIT, a premier engineering institute that attracts some of India’s finest minds. Two suicides have been reported in two days from the IITs in Hyderabad and Kanpur.
A 23-year-old IIT-Hyderabad student allegedly died by suicide this morning at a lodge near the institute where he had moved in three months ago.
Megh Kapoor, who had completed his BTech at the IIT, allegedly jumped off the terrace of his building in the early hours of Wednesday. He was from Rajasthan’s Jodhpur.
The police are still investigating the reason for the alleged suicide.
Earlier on August 31, a second year MTech student was found dead on the institute campus. Rahul Bingumalla, 25, was allegedly found hanging in his hostel room.
In neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, an IIT student’s suicide was reported from Srikakulam. The 17-year-old was said to have been “heartbroken” because she did not do well in her exam.
Yesterday, a student died by suicide at IIT Kanpur. The student, Prashant Singh, had bolted his hostel room door. A student called campus security last evening when Prashant did not open his door or respond.
The institute’s officials broke into the room and found him dead.
Prashant was a student of mechanical engineering and had “outstanding academic qualifications”, the institute said. He enrolled in IIT Kanpur in 2019 for his Master’s degree before signing up for a PhD programme last year.
“The institute lost a talented student and aspiring scientist,” the IIT statement said.
