I have a Solution that will reduce pressure on IIT aspirants but do not know how to get this across to HRD Minister of India. Suggestions are welcome. - Ram Krishnaswamy

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Monday, July 8, 2019

Yet Another IIT Student Resorted To Suicide. Who Is To Be Blamed Now? - Youth Ki Awaaz

Yet Another IIT Student Resorted To Suicide. Who Is To Be Blamed Now?

Trigger Warning: Suicide, Depression

Just like an IITian resorted to suicide and hanged himself on July 2, there are many highlights on an IIT campus every year. This time, the decision to take this step was attributed to his poor marks in exams and not being offered a job.

In fact, since our days in school, we have been told, “if you score well, you will get a gift.” In that greed, many children leave their entire childhoods behind. Parents gift nice things to their children but never spare them time to use the gifts. We were told, “the only way to getting a good job and being happy in life is by studying well.” We only know this singular method of earning our happiness. We forget that a full day and night immersed in books not only steals our happiness but also our physical fitness.

It cuts off us from our society, from this earth, from nature. We just live in a virtual world which was created by our parents, our education system, our colleges and our jobs. In fact, we were never told the true meaning of life. At this point, I wonder if we were born only to worsen ourselves!

The actual problem that surrounds our Indian education system is that it is only job oriented. A student slides easily into depression if they aren’t selected in campus placements and thus unable to fulfill the expectations of parents which they carry from the very day of their birth.

Academic pressure, fierce competition, isolation, the pressure of a job, society and parents’ expectations – all of this contributes to a less than happy lifestyle for an Indian student.

It can clearly be observed from the note left behind that the student wanted to explore themselves. He ended by telling his friends to not take life for granted, “Don’t forget to live, ek hi zindagi hai.”
Featured image used for representative purposes only.
Featured image source: Pixnio

Indian student commits suicide for ‘failure’ to get a job - Gulf News

Indian student commits suicide for ‘failure’ to get a job

Mark Andrew Charles hung himself because of “poor grades” and “failure to secure a job”



Mark A. Charles, Indian student who hung himself
Mark A. Charles, Indian student who hung himself in hostel roomImage Credit: Mark A. Charles/ Facebook

Mark Andrew Charles hung himself because of “poor grades” and “failure to secure a job”

Dubai: Yet another Indian student has killed himself because of “poor grades” and “failure to secure a job”. A final year master’s degree student from Hyderabad, India, left an emotional suicide note after he hung himself at his hostel.

What happened?

According to a report by Indian newspaper, The Times of India, Mark Andrew Charles, a student at the Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad (IIT-H) left a moving suicide note for his friends and family in which he called himself a “loser” and apologised to parents for not being able to make the most of their sacrifices.

The newspaper had obtained a copy of his suicide note, in which the Varanasi youth said: “I don’t have a job, probably wouldn’t get one. No one hires a loser!.... It’s amazing to look at my grade sheet. A few more alphabets and it will look like an alphabet chart.”

He added: “I did have dreams, just like everyone. But now, it’s pretty empty. All this positivity, the constant smiling, telling people that I am okay, even though I am not.”

The news created uproar on social media and users were upset after reading what Charles had written and gone through.

Tweep @hemang_1 posted: “Constant pressure is killing many youth. Time to rethink our behaviour as a society.”

Indian journalist @ShreyaTeresita posted: “It was a bad day as an editor. I choked up at work while reading Mark Andrew Charles’ suicide note. I was scared.

“Hug a friend today - a friend, sibling, family member... someone who seems low, beaten down, stressed. Hug them and tell them, they are worthy.”

Charles requested his parents not to bury him but to hand his body for medical use as he would “make a good specimen cadaver to the future doctors of India”.

IIT-H responsible?

In another report by the same newspaper, a day after his death, Charles’ family blamed the professors of the institute and alleged that they had humiliated him.

The report quoted his mother Nirmanya, who said: “He was full of positivity. He was bright and believed in himself. However, two years in this institute broke him.”

She called her son a “bright kid” who was “reminded that he was not good enough and that led him to commit suicide”.

In his note, Charles advises a few of his friends not to “waste” their lives in the IT industry. He said: “Ankit, Rajjo, IT me kaam karte apni life matt bhul jana. Live a little every day. Ek hi zindagi mili hain” (while trying to make a career and work in the IT industry, don’t forget to live a little every day. We have been given only one life).

Nirmanya and her husband blamed IIT-H for their son’s death in their recorded statement to the police.

In the newspaper report, Sangareddy Deputy Superintendent of police P. Sridhar Reddy said: “Mark did not mention anything against the institute in his letter, but his parents are blaming the institute.

“They claimed that he complained about a few of the professors and narrated how he was humiliated for not being able to even handle a DSLR (camera). However, there are no proofs.”

Mark’s parents, who were in Hyderabad to take their son’s body back to Varanasi said that they spoke to Charles the day before he committed suicide and claimed that he was happy and didn’t seem depressed.

Indian education system

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) is deemed to be the best institution in the country for engineering, education and research in terms of quality and standards, according to online website Inside Higher Ed. The IIT exam, known as the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE), is a very competitive exam that very few people get through. In 2014, 1.3 million candidates appeared for JEE Main.

Over the years, the institute has been criticised for being too competitive and there are many cases of students ending their lives because they can not handle the acadeic pressure.

Twitter users blamed the Indian education system that puts too much pressure on students.

Tweep @raveend19173286 posted: “Mark Andrew Charles... an IITian commits suicide ... who is responsible? Our own hypocritical society! Society preaches something since childhood all in the name of education and throws just the opposite conditions to live in?”

Tweep @kmratishi: “Truly feel sorry for the parents who’ve to deal with the ugly aftermath where the community has no sympathy for the grieving parents. What’ll they do with those years of memories of watching their son grow into a human being? All that’ll be left are horrible images and a letter.”

And Twitter user @thesujay2010 posted: “Suicide in the premier institute like IITs… is a serious issue. Administration can’t avoid the responsibility. If a good student after cracking IIT, failed, [got] no job, then why are the concerned department/faculty not being questioned for his downfall?”

Not the first time

This is the second suicide report at the institute this year. In February 2019, a third-year student, Anirudhya Mummaneni jumped off the seven-storey hostel building at IIT-H.

Mummaneni, 21 years, was depressed when he took his life and had contemplated taking extreme steps to end his life the week before he died.

According to US-based online news publication international Business times, IIT Madras recorded two suicides in one month, at their campus. In September 2018, a 23-year-old committed suicide by hanging herself in her hostel room.

Do you think the Indian education system puts too much pressure on students? Do you know of anyone who went through something like this? Write to us at readers at gulfnews.com.

Don’t let your IT job ruin your life, an IIT student warns friends in his suicide letter - Quartz


Don’t let your IT job ruin your life, an IIT student warns friends in his suicide letter

By Kuwar SinghJuly 4, 2019

A student of the elite Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) committed suicide earlier this week, but not before sending out a stark warning to his friends about life in the IT sector.

“IT me kaam karte karte apni life matt bhul jana. Live a little everyday. Ek hi zindagi mili hain (Don’t forget your life working in IT…There’s only one life),” Mark Andrew Charles wrote in the letter, The Times of India newspaper reported on July 3.

Charles, a twenty-year-old masters student of design, hanged himself in his hostel room on the campus in Hyderabad, the police said on July 2. “I am sorry I turned out to be such a waste,” he wrote in the eight-page letter addressing his Varanasi-based parents, according to TV news channel NDTV.

India’s IT professionals often work long hours and complain of a bad work culture. Students at premier engineering and science institutions in the country, therefore, have an added pressure to land a great job. Suicides at IIT have long captured public attention as a reflection of the excessive stress India’s high-performing students are put under.

Though Charles’s despair is apparent in his letter, he also mentioned the need for “all this positivity, the constant smiling, telling people that I’m ok even though I’m not,” the Times of India said. What pushed him to take the extreme step seem to be his low grades and the fact that he was about to graduate and did not have a job offer.

This is the second such incident at IIT Hyderabad alone this year. Anirudhya Mummaneni, a mechanical and aerospace engineering student in his fourth year, had jumped off a hostel building in February.

“The decision to end my life is purely logical, based on my estimation of what the future contains,” Mummaneni wrote in an email to his friends before his death. “Life holds no intrigue anymore and the daily grind is becoming more difficult with time.”

IIT Hyderabad student commits suicide by hanging in hostel room - India TV news


IIT Hyderabad student commits suicide by hanging in hostel room
Anxiety and depression may be the reason for the suicide. This is the second suicide this year at the institution.

PTI
Sangareddy (Telangana)Updated on: July 03, 2019 17:24 IST



Image Source : PTI

IIT Hyderabad Student commits suicide by hanging in hostel room

Representational image

A student of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Hyderabad, allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself from the ceiling fan in his hostel room, the police said on Tuesday.

This is the second suicide this year at the institution.

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Sangareddy senior police official P Sridhar Reddy said the student Mark Andrew Charles, 20, had gone to his hostel room at about 11 pm on Monday.

As he did not show up, his friends broke open the door of his room in the afternoon Tuesday and found him hanging, the police official said.

He said the student, who was pursuing his Master in Designing, had completed his final year exam some days ago and he was preparing for his final presentation. He hailed from Naria Lanka locality in Varanasi district of Uttar Pradesh.

The police found a suicide note written in his diary in which he mentioned that he may not get good marks and there was no future for "failures in the world", the senior police officer said.

Anxiety and depression may be the reason for the suicide, police said.

Andrew mentioned names of some of his friends in the note recalling his association with them, police said.

"I never thought I would end up letting all of you down. Do not miss me. I don't deserve it I am not worthy. Just know that I love you all back just the way you did because that is what friends do right? And also I am not doing this because I am sad now..."

The police said he expressed regret to his parents for not being able to do justice to all their sacrifices. "Thank you for being the best parents.. I am sorry I turned out to be such a waste," he said in the suicide note.

IIT-Hyderabad condoled the death of its student. "This is indeed an irreparable loss to the institute and the family. May his soul rest in peace," the institution said.

A case has been registered, police said, adding that the body was shifted to a government hospital for autopsy.

His parents are on their way from Varanasi,the DSP said.

On January 31 this year, M.Anirudh, a third-year student of Mechanical and Aerospace engineering, committed suicide by jumping from the hostel building.

24-year-old student commits suicide inside IIT hostel in Telengana's Sangareddy; police recovers apology letter to parents - First Post

24-year-old student commits suicide inside IIT hostel in Telengana's Sangareddy; police recovers apology letter to parents

Sangareddy: 

A 24-year-old student allegedly committed suicide inside his hostel of IIT campus in the wee hours of Tuesday, police said. According to Sangareddy police, the deceased student identified as Mark Andrews Charles completed his Masters in Designing from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) a few days ago and was preparing for the last presentation.
 24-year-old student commits suicide inside IIT hostel in Telenganas Sangareddy; police recovers apology letter to parents
Representational image. PTI
"In wee hours of Tuesday, Charles hanged himself to death in his room inside the campus hostel. His friends informed us about the incident. We have recovered a suicide note from his room in which he apologised to his parents and friends for taking the extreme step. The body has been shifted to the local government hospital for post mortem," the police said. A case under Section 174 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) has been registered.

Don’t forget to live, .. - Times of India

Telangana: 24-year-old IIT student commits suicide inside campus hostel in Sangareddy - Business Standard

Telangana: 24-year-old IIT student commits suicide inside campus hostel in Sangareddy

ANI  |  General News 
A 24-year-old student allegedly committed suicide inside his hostel of IIT campus in the wee hours of Tuesday, police said.
According to Sangareddy Rural police, the deceased student identified as Mark Andrews Charles completed his Masters in Designing from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) a few days ago and was preparing for the last presentation.
"In wee hours of Tuesday, Charles hanged himself to death in his room inside the campus hostel. His friends informed us about the incident. We have recovered a suicide note from his room in which he apologised to his parents and friends for taking the extreme step. The body has been shifted to the local government hospital for post mortem," the police said.
A case under Section 174 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) has been registered.

Sunday, July 7, 2019

'No Future for Failures': IIT Hyderabad Student Hangs Himself to Death - News 18.com

'No Future for Failures': IIT Hyderabad Student Hangs Himself to Death


This is the second suicide this year at IIT Hyderabad. The students hailed from Naria Lanka locality in Uttar Pradesh's Varanasi.

PTI

Updated:July 2, 2019, 7:56 PM IST

A student of the Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad, allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself from the ceiling fan in his hostel room, police said Tuesday.

This is the second suicide this year at the institution.

Sangareddy Deputy Superintendent of Police P Sridhar Reddy said the student Mark Andrew Charles, 20, had gone to his hostel room at about 11 pm Monday. As he did not show up, his friends broke open the door of his room in the afternoon Tuesday and found him hanging, the DSP said.

He said the student, who was pursuing his Master in Designing, had completed his final year exam some days ago and he was preparing for his final presentation.

He hailed from Naria Lanka locality in Varanasi district of Uttar Pradesh.

Police found a suicide note written in his diary in which he mentioned that he may not get good marks and there was no future for "failures in the world", the DSP said. Anxiety and depression may be the reason for the suicide, police said.

Andrew mentioned names of some of his friends in the note recalling his association with them, police said.

"I never thought I would end up letting all of you down. Do not miss me. I don't deserve it I am not worthy. Just know that I love you all back just the way you did because that is what friends do right? And also I am not doing this because I am sad now..."

Police said he expressed regret to his parents for not being able to do justice to all their sacrifices.

"Thank you for being the best parents... I am sorry I turned out to be such a waste," he said in the suicide note.

IIT-Hyderabad condoled the death of its student. "This is indeed an irreparable loss to the institute and the family. May his soul rest in peace," the institution said.

A case has been registered, police said, adding that the body was shifted to a government hospital for autopsy.

His parents are on their way from Varanasi, the DSP said.

On January 31 this year, M.Anirudh, a third-year student of Mechanical and Aerospace engineering, committed suicide by jumping from the hostel building.

Thursday, July 4, 2019

'Sorry I turned out to be a waste': IIT Hyderabad student commits suicide, leaves haunting note


'Sorry I turned out to be a waste': IIT Hyderabad student commits suicide, leaves haunting note


A student of the Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad committed suicide by hanging himself from the fan of his hostel room on Tuesday

Press Trust of India SangareddyJuly 2, 2019UPDATED: July 2, 2019 19:52 IST



The student was pursuing his Master in Designing and had completed his final year exam some days ago (Photo for representation)


A student of the Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad, allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself from the ceiling fan in his hostel room, police said Tuesday.

This is the second suicide this year at the institution. Sangareddy Deputy Superintendent of Police P. Sridhar Reddy said the student Mark Andrew Charles, 20, had gone to his hostel room at about 11 pm Monday.

As he did not show up, his friends broke open the door of his room in the afternoon Tuesday and found him hanging, the DSP said.

He said the student, who was pursuing his Master in Designing, had completed his final year exam some days ago and he was preparing for his final presentation.

He hailed from Naria Lanka locality in Varanasi district of Uttar Pradesh.

'DO NOT MISS ME'

Police found a suicide note written in his diary in which he mentioned that he may not get good marks and there was no future for "failures in the world", the DSP said. Anxiety and depression may be the reason for the suicide, police said.

Andrew mentioned names of some of his friends in the note recalling his association with them, police said.

"I never thought I would end up letting all of you down. Do not miss me. I dont deserve it I am not worthy. Just know that I love you all back just the way you did because that is what friends do right? And also I am not doing this because I am sad now..."

Police said he expressed regret to his parents for not being able to do justice to all their sacrifices.

"Thank you for being the best parents.. I am sorry I turned out to be such a waste," he said in the suicide note. IIT-Hyderabad condoled the death of its student.

I never thought I would end up letting all of you down. Do not miss me. I dont deserve it I am not worthy

"This is indeed an irreparable loss to the institute and the family. May his soul rest in peace," the institution said.

A case has been registered, police said, adding that the body was shifted to a government hospital for autopsy.

His parents are on their way from Varanasi, the DSP said.

On January 31 this year, M. Anirudh, a third year student of Mechanical and Aerospace engineering, committed suicide by jumping from the hostel building.

Depressed IIT-Hyderabad student ends life over poor marks

2nd July 2019 IIT Hyderabad

Depressed IIT-Hyderabad student ends life over poor marks

In the suicide note purportedly written by him, he maintained that he had decided to end his life because he did not get expected marks in the examination.

AddThis Sharing Buttons
By Author  |  Published: 2nd Jul 2019  6:08 pmUpdated: 2nd Jul 2019  9:20 pm
Mark Andew Charles
Sangareddy: 

A student of IIT Hyderabad in the second year of M Design Course ended his life by hanging himself in the hostel on the institute premises in the early hours of Tuesday.

Mark Andrew Charles, a 25-year-old second year student of M Design at IIT-H, committed suicide by hanging himself at his room in the early hours of Tuesday. He was a native of Varanasi. It is the second suicide on the IIT-H campus in five months. Earlier, M Anirudhya, a final year B Tech student, jumped off the 7th floor of the hostel building on February 1 this year.

In a suicide note purportedly written by him in his diary, which was found in his room, Mark, who had just gave his second year examinations and was all set to submit his final presentation, wrote that he decided to end his life because he was expecting good grades. Stating that the world never treats those who do not succeed in life, Mark said he was going to end his life because he was feeling empty, but not sad.

“I have many times acted to show that I am good and okay, but I used to suffer a lot within,” Mark wrote. When he failed to come out of his hostel room even after 2 pm, his friends and college management broke open the door only to find his lifeless body hanging from the ceiling.

Starting the letter by saying that he had decided to call it quits, the 25-year-old student asked his friends to stay strong in their lives. He also had a few positive things to his friend Neel, writing that humanity was the key, and asked him to remember this always. He told his friends: “Ankit, Rajjo, IT Kam karte karte apne life mat bhul jana, live a little every day. Eki zindagi mili hai”.

Addressing his parents, Mark wrote that he could not meet their expectations. “I don’t have a good portfolio, got bad grades and no job. I am sorry I could not do justice to all your sacrifices,” he wrote.

The body was shifted to Government Hospital, Sangareddy, and the parents are expected to reach the town by Wednesday morning.

DSP, Sangareddy, Sridhar Reddy visited the IIT-H campus on coming to know about the incident. Speaking to the media, he said Mark left for his hostel room a bit early at 11 pm on Monday night, though he usually spends time with his friends till midnight. After he failed to come out of the room even after 2 pm the following afternoon and also failed to respond to messages and phone calls, his friends and management broke open the door. As Mark dated his letter July 2, the police came to the conclusion that he died in the early hours of Tuesday after writing the suicide note. His friends, faculty and classmates broke down on seeing his lifeless body.

Wednesday, June 12, 2019

Mumbai Crime: IIT scholar who stalked woman for 5 years held in Bihar - Mid DFay

Mumbai Crime: IIT scholar who stalked woman for 5 years held in Bihar

Updated: Jun 11, 2019, 09:10 IST | Faizan Khan

The accused, identified as Hemant Kumar, was a research scholar at IIT-Guwahati from where he was expelled in 2017 for harassing the 26-year-old complainant, a resident of Mumbai

Mumbai Crime: IIT scholar who stalked woman for 5 years held in Bihar
A 30-year-old man has been arrested from Bihar for sending obscene and threatening emails to a PhD scholar at Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, the Powai police said on Monday. The accused, identified as Hemant Kumar, was a research scholar at IIT-Guwahati from where he was expelled in 2017 for harassing the 26-year-old complainant, a resident of Mumbai.
Kumar first saw the woman in the lab of Ranchi Research Center where they studied between 2015 and 2016, the police said. He started stalking her and messaged her on Facebook.
"The complainant started receiving vulgar messages on her Facebook messenger after which she blocked the account," said a cop. He then created different accounts and harassed her.
After constant harassment, she informed a professor at the lab who warned Kumar. However, he did not stop. When, in 2017, the victim joined IIT-Bombay, she again received vulgar emails from different IDs, the police said. Kumar, who got into IIT-Guwahati the same year, sent messages to her batch mates too. He also threatened to commit suicide and blame her for his step.
The victim filed a complaint with IIT's women's cell when he started harassing her friends too. This led to his expulsion from IIT-Guwahati. According to police, Kumar used nine different email IDs and five phone numbers to harass her. 
The victim, who received messages from Kumar even when she was in Australia in 2017 and 2018, filed a police complaint on returning home in April 2019. The police tracked him to Purnia in Bihar and arrested him on Saturday under IPC Section 354 (outraging modesty of a women) and relevant sections of IT act, said a senior officer. He was produced in court on Sunday.

Monday, June 10, 2019

UGC plans action against non-complying varsities - Economic Times

UGC plans action against non-complying varsities

​The development comes in the wake of the alleged suicide of a 26-year-old second-year postgraduate student in Mumbai’s TN Topiwala National Medical College.