IIT Kanpur female researcher dies by suicide in hostel room

KANPUR: A 34-year-old research staff of Indian Institute of Technology-Kanpur hanged herself on Tuesday from the ceiling fan of her second-floor hostel room, police said. The woman, Pallavi Chilka, was from Odisha's Cuttack and had joined the IIT to pursue her postdoctoral research.

The death was revealed when the cleaning staff knocked at Chilka door late in the afternoon and there was no response. The person peeped inside and found Chilka hanging from the ceiling, police said. Police broke the door open and brought the body down, Kalyanpur SHO Dhananjay Pandey told reporters. Pandey said preliminary investigation suggested depression to be the cause behind the suicide. The SHO said Chilka had shifted to the RA hostel just three days back from a private rented accommodation.

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The Institute, in a press release, expressed its grief over the death. "A promising young researcher, Chilka, joined the Institute to pursue her postdoctoral research. She was found dead in her hostel room on 19th December," the press release stated. Chilka worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering of the institute. The report from a police forensic team which visited the campus to ascertain the reason for the death is awaited.

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