KHARAGPUR, July 18 — A fourth-year mechanical engineering student at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur was found hanging in his hostel room on Friday, marking the fourth suspected suicide on campus since January.
The deceased, identified as 21-year-old Ritam Mondal from Kolkata, was discovered in his room at Rajendra Prasad Hall of Residence around noon after he failed to respond to repeated knocks. “Security personnel and local police broke open the door and found him hanging,” an institute official told PTI.
Mondal had reportedly returned to his room after dinner on Thursday night. “There was no indication of anything unusual. His behaviour seemed normal,” said one of his hostel mates, stunned by the turn of events.
The news has sent fresh shockwaves through the campus, already reeling from a string of similar tragedies this year. On January 12, third-year electrical engineering student Shaon Malik was found hanging in his hostel room. On April 20, final-year Ocean Engineering student Aniket Walker died under similar circumstances. Just two weeks later, on May 4, third-year B Tech student Mohammad Asif Qamar was also found dead in his hostel.
With four cases of unnatural student deaths in under seven months, questions around mental health support and campus life at one of India’s top engineering institutions have intensified.
The institute has informed Mondal’s family and said all necessary procedures are being followed. “It’s a moment of deep grief for the entire IIT Kharagpur community,” said an official.
In response to earlier incidents, the institute had introduced several initiatives aimed at improving emotional support systems for students. Among these are the installation of bar codes on hostel room doors that link to a 24/7 counselling helpline and the launch of a “Campus Mothers” programme. The initiative connects students with women faculty and staff who act as emotional mentors.
Despite these measures, the recurrence of such deaths has sparked concern. Calls for a deeper review of institutional responses to mental health issues in academic settings are growing louder.
