IIT Kharagpur has decided to set up a committee to investigate the death of a third-year BTech student who was found hanging in his hostel room on Sunday afternoon when his parents came to meet him.

Amit Patra, the director of IIT BHU (Varanasi) and interim director of IIT Kharagpur, said the committee has been set up to identify what triggered the death of Shaon Malik.

“The committee will try to find out what was responsible for the death of the student. An office order regarding the constitution of the committee will be issued soon,” Patra, who was the deputy director of the IIT before taking over the reins of IIT BHU, told Metro.

“Following the unfortunate incident, we have decided to revisit our mental health and counselling programmes. We will also revisit the issue of academic pressure. All aspects involving the welfare of the students will be revisited.”

Patra said the police were yet to tell them what caused the death of the student, who was found hanging in his room at the Azad Hall of Residence.

The post-mortem was conducted at Midnapore Medical College and Hospital.

Dhritiman Sarkar, the superintendent of West Midnapore police, said they were yet to be told about the findings of the post-mortem.

A forensic team collected evidence from room 302 in B block of the Azad Hall of Residence where the student of electrical engineering stayed.

“We have seized the two mobile phones and laptop of the deceased student. We are examining the records of the devices as part of the investigation. The chat history and the search history on Google are also being examined,” Sarkar said on Monday morning.

“We have spoken to three close friends (of the victim). All possible angles are being looked into.”

Shaon’s parents live at a housing complex called “Payamanti” in Kasba.

The residents of the housing estate said Shaon was very studious.

“He was a topper at Garden High School in Rajdanga. He would rue even if he failed to answer a question carrying just one mark. He would sometimes not take part in the Puja celebrations of the housing complex for fear of missing out on studies,” a neighbour said.

The neighbour said that when Shaon cracked the JEE-Advanced and secured a berth at IIT Kharagpur in
2022, the coaching centre where he had enrolled put up posters in surrounding areas with his picture.

Shaon’s father Swarup Malik declined comment

A senior official at Garden High School said: “Shaon enrolled in our school in Class VII. He was among the toppers. He was an active member of our debating club.”

The dean of students at the IIT, Bhargab Maitra, said in an email to students on Monday: “If you or anyone you know is struggling with grief or any emotional anguish, please do not hesitate to reach out to us for assistance. The counselling services are available to provide support, and we encourage you to take advantage of these resources. We request you to check in on your friends and classmates... and share your feelings and concerns with those you trust. We are stronger together and supporting one another is how we can navigate these difficult moments.”

The contact details of the counselling facilities have been mentioned in
the mail.

Session

The Research Scholars’ Council at IIT Kharagpur has decided to hold an interactive session with undergraduate, postgraduate and research scholars on the topic “Let’s Break the Silence; Navigating Mental Health in Academia” on the campus on January 16 in collaboration with the Rakhi Centre of Excellence for the Science of Happiness.