NEW DELHI: A final-year student at the Indian Institute of Technology (Indian School of Mines), Dhanbad in Jharkhand has died after falling from the eighth floor of a campus hostel on Saturday morning.
The incident occurred sometime between 7.30 am and 7.45 am at Aqua Marine hostel inside the campus. The student has been identified as Mane Rajkumar Pratik (25), a fourth year Petroleum Engineering student, from Ahmedpur city in Latur district, Maharashtra.
It is suspected to be a suicide. This is the fourth unnatural death involving an IIT student in the last three months.
An official from the college said he was good at his studies and also participated in extracurricular activities.
“The incident happened at Aqua Marine hostel inside the campus. Other students noticed him and the authorities were alerted. He was rushed to the nearby hospital where he was declared brought dead,” he said.
However, he ruled out foul play when asked if the student had any issues. "It is likely a case of suicide, though police are still investigating the matter. Mane was set to graduate with flying colours and had a great career ahead of him."
Hostel security-in-charge Ram Manohar Singh said the body had been sent for postmortem and the family was on the way to collect it.
On August 22, an M.Sc student committed suicide at IIT Delhi. On September 1, a B.Tech student died at IIT Delhi while on Septmber 18, another B.Tech student died by suicide at IIT Bombay.
(If you are having suicidal thoughts, or are worried about a friend or need emotional support, someone is always there to listen. Call Tele Manas - 14416 (available 24x7) or Sneha Foundation - 04424640050 or iCall, the Tata Institute of Social Sciences helpline - 02225521111, which is available Monday to Saturday from 8 am to 10 pm.)