A second-year Chemical Engineering student at Mumbai’s Institute of Chemical Technology died by suicide in his hostel room on the institute’s Matunga campus on Tuesday night, prompting a police investigation and renewed concern over mental-health support in the city’s higher-education institutions.
The 19-year-old student, identified as Siddhesh Patil, was found in a room on the second floor of Hostel 5, according to the Matunga police and a senior ICT official. Police said the incident was believed to have occurred between 10 pm and midnight. The institute administration took him to a hospital, where he was declared dead on arrival.
The Matunga police registered an Accidental Death Report and said the cause of death had not yet been established. “A 19-year-old second-year Chemical Engineering student at the Institute of Chemical Technology (ICT) was found dead in his hostel room. We have registered an Accidental Death Report,” the police said.
The police added that the post-mortem analysis would be awaited and that statements from Patil’s family and friends would be recorded. “We are investigating the matter,” the police said. The investigation is expected to examine the circumstances surrounding the death and the events preceding it.
ICT has not issued a separate public statement on the incident. However, Vice-Chancellor A B Pandit informed students and faculty members through a message circulated on campus. The message said the police had been informed, statements had been prepared from those concerned and steps had been taken to release the student’s mortal remains to his family.
A classmate told The Indian Express that Patil was from Nashik and had been undergoing treatment for depression with a doctor in Mumbai. The classmate said Patil had spoken to the doctor on Tuesday night about wanting to end his life, following which the doctor alerted his parents. His parents then contacted students at the hostel and asked them to check on him. By the time students reached the room, he had died, the classmate said. These details form part of the police and institutional investigation and have not been independently confirmed in the report.
The incident comes amid continuing protests at IIT Bombay over the September 18 death of Sahil Wakode, a 20-year-old second-year BTech student. Wakode’s parents alleged that he faced caste-based discrimination and harassment by a faculty member, allegations denied by the institute. Police registered an abetment-to-suicide case on the basis of the family’s complaint and transferred the investigation to the Mumbai Police Crime Branch.
Students at IIT Bombay have demanded an independent investigation, greater transparency in disciplinary proceedings and changes to student welfare and mental-health support systems. Protests continued into October, with Wakode’s parents and student protesters detained on October 18 as police cleared a demonstration near the institute’s main gate.
There is no indication of a connection between the deaths at ICT and IIT Bombay. The Matunga police investigation, including the post-mortem examination and statements from the student’s family and friends, will determine the circumstances of the ICT student’s death.
