NEET aspirant found dead in hostel in Kota
Jawahar Nagar station house officer (SHO) Harinarayan Sharma said they are yet to confirm if the student had died by suicide
Jaipur: A 16-year-old student preparing for the National Entrance Eligibility Test (NEET) in Rajasthan’s Kota was found dead at his hostel room on Sunday morning, officials familiar with the matter said.
Jawahar Nagar station house officer (SHO) Harinarayan Sharma said they are yet to confirm if the student had died by suicide.
According to the police, the student went to his room after dinner on Saturday night last night; however, the next morning, when he remained absent from his regular scheduled and did not respond to several knocks, the hostel authority broke open the door and found him lying dead on his bed.
Police said that the student was a native of Bihar and had been staying in Kota for the past one year.
Following the incident, the hostel authorities called the police, who took the boy to the hospital, where the doctors declared him brought dead, said the SHO, adding that the body has been sent for autopsy.
SHO Sharma said no suicide note was recovered from the student’s belongings. “No behavioural changes were reported by anyone in the last few days. We are probing whether he attempted the last NEET test. His family has been informed,” he said.
As many as 13 students preparing for either NEET or Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) in coaching centres in Rajasthan’s Kota have allegedly died by suicide this year.
Last year, 27 students, preparing for various competitive examinations, allegedly died by suicide in the state.
Kota is the hub of India’s test-prep business, estimated to be worth Rs.10,000 crore annually, according to officials in the district administration.
Students from around the country arrive here in huge numbers after completing Class X and register in residential test-prep institutes. They also enroll in schools, most of which are largely for purposes of certification.
Students attend classes only in the test-prep institutes, which prepare them for their Class XII examination, but more importantly, entrance examinations such as NEET and JEE.