A 34-year-old research staff member at the Indian Institute of Technology-Kanpur reportedly hanged herself on Tuesday from the ceiling fan of her second-floor hostel room, according to police.
The woman, identified as Pallavi Chilka from Cuttack, Odisha, had recently joined IIT-Kanpur to pursue her postdoctoral research.
The discovery of her death occurred when cleaning staff, receiving no response after knocking on Chilka's door late in the afternoon, peered inside and found her hanging from the ceiling, as per police reports.
Authorities broke open the door and retrieved the body. Kalyanpur SHO Dhananjay Pandey informed reporters that preliminary investigations suggested depression as the possible cause of the suicide. Chilka had relocated to the RA hostel just three days prior from a privately rented accommodation.
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The institute, in a press release, expressed sorrow over Chilka's death. It stated, "A promising young researcher, Chilka, joined the Institute to pursue her postdoctoral research. She was found dead in her hostel room on 19th December."
She had been working as a postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering.
A report from a police forensic team that visited the campus to determine the cause of death is yet to come.
