KOLKATA: Yet another incident of suicide was reported inside the IIT-Kharagpur campus in West Bengal on Wednesday.
The body of 36-year-old professor Dr Deepak Reddy Pullaguram from the Electrical Engineering Department of IIT-Kharagpur was found hanging inside a room of the staff quarter.
The incident has created tension among faculty members, students and staff inside the campus.
Police suspect it to be a case of suicide based on the initial investigation. However, the reason behind the death of the professor, a resident of Hyderabad, is not known yet.
Police officials from the Hijli police outpost under Kharagpur police station visited the spot and registered an unnatural death case.
According to police sources, Dr Pullaguram stayed in staff quarter ‘2 BR-14’ inside the campus. Security personnel informed the local police after they found his body hanging from the ceiling of his room.
Police recovered the body and took it to the B C Hospital inside the campus, where doctors declared him dead. The room where security guards found the body has been sealed, and the body has been sent to the morgue for post-mortem examination.
His family members in Hyderabad have also been informed by the police.
Officers investigating the case are yet to ascertain whether it was a suicide or if there were other reasons behind the professor's death. No suicide note has been recovered from the spot so far.
Police are also examining whether he had any psychiatric or family-related issues.
Busra Bano, Additional Superintendent of Police in charge of Kharagpur town, told reporters, “The body of a professor of IIT Kharagpur has been recovered. The exact reason behind his death is being investigated by police.”
The incident comes months after two student deaths were reported on the IIT-Kharagpur campus.
On April 28, Soham Haldar (22), a fourth-year MTech Electronics and Electrical Communication student, died by suicide on the campus. Security personnel had rushed to the hostel after being informed that his room remained locked from inside. They found Soham's body hanging from the ceiling of his room at the Madanmohan Malaviya Hostel.
On April 18, Jaiveer Singh Dodia (21), a third-year Mechanical Engineering student, died after allegedly jumping from the eighth floor of a hostel building. He hailed from Ahmedabad and stayed at the Nehru Hall hostel.
HELPLINE
If you are having suicidal thoughts, or are worried about a friend or need emotional support, someone is always there to listen. Call Sneha Foundation - 04424640050, Tele Manas - 14416 (available 24x7) or Call, the Tata Institute of Social Sciences’ helpline - 02225521111, which is available Monday to Saturday from 8 am to 10 pm.
