Another unnatural death has been reported from IIT Kharagpur casting a shadow over one of the country’s premier engineering institutions. On Saturday afternoon, the body of a student was found hanging in a hostel room, triggering concern across the campus.
According to police sources, the incident took place around 2 pm at BR Ambedkar Hall. The deceased student has been identified as Harsh Kumar Pandey, a resident of Jharkhand. Police from the Hijli outpost rushed to the spot, recovered the body and sent it for autopsy. A senior officer of the district police said it was too early to confirm the exact cause of death, which will be known only after the post-mortem report is available.
This latest tragedy adds to a disturbing pattern at IIT Kharagpur. So far this year, six students have died unnatural deaths on campus. Five of them, including Harsh, were found hanging in their hostel rooms.
The series began in January with the death of Shoaan Malik, followed by Mohammad Asif Qamar in March and Aniket Walkar in April. On July 18, Ritam Mondal, a resident of Regent Park in Kolkata, was discovered hanging. Three days later, Chandradeep Pawar, a second-year electrical engineering student from Madhya Pradesh, died after choking on medicine.
The repeated tragedies have sparked alarm among students and parents. Concerns are being raised over the safety measures, hostel surveillance and most importantly, the adequacy of mental health support available to students under immense academic and personal pressure.
“For one of India’s most prestigious institutes, the mounting deaths are no longer being seen as isolated incidents, but as signs of deeper systemic failures that urgently need to be addressed,” said a student’s father, on condition of anonymity.
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