A 21-year-old BTech student at IIT Kharagpur was found hanging in his hostel room on Friday(18 July 2025), marking the fourth suspected suicide on the campus this year.
The student, Rital Mondal, was a final-year mechanical engineering student and a native of Kolkata. His body was discovered in Rajendra Prasad (RP) Hall after hostelmates alerted authorities because he didn’t respond to repeated knocks on his door.
According to Campus officials, the incident was discovered around noon, when security staff and campus police broke open the door and found him hanging. His friends said he had gone back to his room after dinner the night before and hadn’t shown any signs of unusual behaviour.
Mondal’s parents have been informed about the incident.
This is the fourth unnatural death at IIT Kharagpur since January 2025, highlighting growing concerns over student mental health and institutional response.
In January, Shaon Malik, a third-year electrical engineering student, was found hanging in his hostel.
In April, Aniket Walker, a final-year Ocean Engineering student, died in a similar manner.
In May, Mohammad Asif Qamar, a third-year BTech student, was also found dead in his hostel room.
Each of these incidents has followed a disturbingly similar pattern — students were found dead in their rooms, usually after no one heard from them for a long time and friends started getting worried.
These back-to-back deaths have once again raised urgent questions:
What mental health support systems are actually in place for students?
Are students aware of or accessing these services?
And is the institute doing enough to check in on warning signs or provide timely intervention?
While the institute has not yet released an official statement about Mondal’s death, the pattern of suicides within a few months suggests a deeper systemic issue that can no longer be ignored.
The death of Rital Mondal is not an isolated tragedy. It is part of a growing and deeply worrying pattern that has cast a long shadow over IIT Kharagpur’s campus. Four bright students have died this year alone. If the institute and authorities don’t seriously reflect and act soon, more such heartbreaking incidents could happen. At this point, it’s not just about mourning — it’s about taking responsibility.