PhD student’s body found hanging in hostel room at IIT-K: Police

KANPUR A 27-year-old PhD student at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur (IIT-K) allegedly ended her life by hanging herself from the ceiling hook in her hostel room on Thursday, said police. This was the fourth such incident at the institute in the last 11 months.

A ‘suicide note’, which held no one responsible for the extreme step, had been recovered from the room, said additional DCP (west) Vijendra Dwivedi. After several unanswered calls since morning, the student’s father spoke to her hostel mates who went to check on her and found the room closed. The door was broken in the presence of police, he informed. The student was pursuing doctorate in earth sciences.

Dwivedi said it seemed that the extreme step was taken during the intervening night but the body was found on Thursday noon.

In a statement, IIT-Kanpur authorities said with profound grief it mourns the tragic and untimely demise of the student.

“A police forensic team visited the campus to investigate the circumstances of the death. The institute is awaiting the results of the police investigation to determine the cause. The institute has lost a promising young researcher. It extends its deepest condolences and prays for strength and comfort to her family and friends in this time of loss,” the IIT stated.

On January 18, a 29-year-old PhD student pursuing chemical engineering had allegedly committed suicide inside her hostel room.

On January 11, an M Tech second-year student allegedly hanged himself from the ceiling fan in his hostel room, reportedly after he was “temporarily” barred from continuing with his course.

On December 19, 34-year-old postdoctoral researcher allegedly hanged herself from the ceiling fan of her second-floor hostel room on the campus.