IIT-Bombay student, 26, jumps to death from hostel building at Powai campus

A 26-year-old student of IIT Bombay died by suicide after jumping off the terrace of his hostel located on the Powai campus here in the early hours on Monday, police said. Prima facie, the deceased student was undergoing treatment for depression, a senior officer said. The deceased student, identified as Darshan Malviya, had written a message on the board in his hostel room, stating that no one should be held responsible for his death, a Powai police station official said. Malviya’s body was spotted by a watchman outside the seven-storey hostel building who called up an official of the institute. Later police were informed. Malviya was rushed to a nearby hospital where he was declared dead before admission, the official said. The deceased student, who hailed from Madhya Pradesh, was pursuing a post-graduate course at the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology from last July. His family members were informed about his death, the official said. Police have registered a case of accidental death, said Powai police station senior inspector Budhan Sawant. “The student had written a message on the board in his hostel room which shows he was undergoing treatment for depression. Further investigation is underway, he said. According to a CNN-News18 report, the number of students dying by suicide is high in central universities and colleges including IITs and IIMS. Over 100 students have died by suicide in top educational institutes since 2014, Union Minister of Education had informed Lok Sabha last year. According to the data shared in the Parliament, as many as 122 students had killed themselves of which most were from Central universities (37). IITs are second with 34 students dying by suicide since 2014. Among IITians, as many as 13 students were from OBC and five from the SC category, according to government data. With input from PTI A collection of Suicide prevention helpline numbers are available here. Please reach out if you or anyone you know is in need of support. The All-India helpline number is: 022-27546669