IIT-R PhD scholar found dead in Gangnahar barrage

Roorkee: A 34-year-old PhD scholar at IIT Roorkee was found dead on Sunday after his body was recovered from the Ashafnagar barrage, police said.

Deceased Mohit Kumar was a native of Nainital and a research scholar in the Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering. He had been staying in a campus hostel and was reportedly missing since Friday, though police noted that no formal missing person report had been filed by the institute or his family.

Passersby spotted the body trapped in Ashafnagar Gangnahar barrage on Sunday evening. The body was handed over to the family after postmortem.

Mohit, a resident of Gethia Sanatorium area in Nainital, had enrolled at the institute three years ago. His family, who usually spoke to him every few days, said they did not initially suspect anything was wrong when they couldn’t reach him. “We do not want to comment on the matter,” a family member told TOI.

Institute authorities informed police that they were unaware Mohit was missing. “Students, especially those from nearby areas, often go home for a day or two without informing officials,” said Pradeep Bisht, in-charge of Civil Lines police station.

Police have since searched Mohit’s hostel room and are examining his notebooks and documents for clues. No suicide note has been recovered. In an official statement, IIT Roorkee expressed “heartfelt condolences” to the scholar’s family.