2 IIT students die by suicide in Kanpur, Hyderabad

A 32-year-old PhD student at IIT-Kanpur allegedly died by suicide in his hostel room, the police said on Wednesday, while in the south a 23-year-old IIT-Hyderabad student allegedly died by suicide on Wednesday at a lodge near the institute where he was staying.

Prashant Singh, who was pursuing PhD in mechanical engineering, hanged himself on Tuesday night, Police Commissioner B P Jogdand said, adding that no suicide note was recovered from the room.

A release issued by the institute stated that a resident of Hall 8 called the security section to report that Singh's room was locked from the inside and he was not responding.

When the institute administration officials forcibly opened the door, they found Singh hanging from the ceiling with the help of a bedsheet, it said.

Singh was taken to the health centre of the institute, where he was declared dead, the institute said, adding that his family members who reside in Varanasi were informed about the incident.

A mobile phone and a laptop belonging to the student have been seized from the spot, the police commissioner said.

The body has been sent for post-mortem and the examination will be performed by a panel of three doctors, he said, adding that the procedure will be video-graphed.

Singh, a student with outstanding academic qualifications, enrolled in IIT-Kanpur in 2019 to work for his master's degree before deciding to enrol in a PhD programme in 2021, the release said.

In Hyderabad, the IIT student went to the terrace of the lodge where he has been staying temporarily, and jumped to his death in the early hours of Wednesday, the police said. He had completed BTech at the institute.

The death comes close on the heels of a suspected suicide of a second-year MTech student in the institute campus recently.

The police said the 23-year-old BTech student, a native of Rajasthan, had been staying at the lodge in Sangareddy town near IIT-Hyderabad.

The reason for his extreme step was not known immediately.

The police said a case under Section 174 CrPC (suspicious death) has been registered following a complaint registered by the lodge staff.

The police said on August 31, a 25-year-old MTech student allegedly ended his life by hanging himself in his room in the institute.