IIT-Kharagpur student found hanging in hostel room, probe underway
Kolkata, Jan 13: A student of IIT-Kharagpur was found dead inside his hostel room, an institute official said on Monday.
Shaon Malik, a third-year student of Electrical Engineering, was found hanging inside the room by his parents who had come to meet him on Sunday.
His parents and institute personnel had to forcibly open the door of the hostel room after he did not respond to repeated calls, the official said.
Malik had spoken to his parents over phone the previous night and “things seemed perfectly normal”, according to the official.
The institute will conduct an internal probe into the death and take steps to prevent such incidents in future, he said.
A senior police officer said the post-mortem has been completed and the process was videographed.
Investigation is underway, he said.
IIT-Kharagpur, in a statement, said: "With a sense of utter shock, the students, staff and faculty members deeply mourn the sudden loss of Shaon Malik, a third-year student from the Department of Electrical Engineering. He was found dead in Azad Hall of Residence premises on the morning of January 12."
The Azad Hall of Residence is one of the hostels in the institute.
"Upon discovery of the incident, the campus security and medical teams were immediately alerted... The police are conducting a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding Malik's death. The institute is fully cooperating with the authorities," it said.
Describing Malik as an academically gifted student, the institute said "he was known for his intelligence, dedication and promising future in the field of Electrical Engineering”.
"The institute is devastated by this tragic event. Our foremost priority at this moment is to extend our heartfelt condolences and support to Malik's family and friends. We are providing all necessary assistance to help them through this incredibly difficult time,” the statement said.
IIT-Kharagpur said it is committed to the well-being and mental health of its students.
"We have a range of support services available, including counseling and mental health resources, and we urge students to utilise these services whenever needed," it said.
A few days ago, the body of an IIT-Kharagpur junior lab technician-cum-assistant was recovered from one of the quarters on the campus.
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Rajnath to top commanders: Outmaneuver adversaries with strategic surprise
Jaipur/New Delhi (PTI): Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday directed the top military commanders of the three services to integrate an "element of surprise" into modern warfare to outmaneuver India's adversaries and bolster strategic posture.
In his address at the joint commanders conference in Jaipur, Singh also described the Operation Sindoor as a testament to the "swift, precise, and joint response" of the Indian armed forces to safeguard national interests and called upon the military to remain ready to deal with any security challenges.
In their two-day deliberations, the commanders carried out a comprehensive review of the combat preparedness of the military in the wake of the evolving regional security situation.
Operation Sindoor was a demonstration of India's growing capabilities and a symbol of the nation's collective resolve and new military ethos, Singh said, a day after the first anniversary of Operation Sindoor.
He also unveiled a 'Joint Doctrine for Integrated Communication Architecture' that is aimed at strengthening doctrinal clarity, interoperability and integrated communications across the armed forces in future multidomain operations.
The joint commanders' conference, themed 'Military Capability in New Domains', brought together the top leadership of the defence ministry and the three services to deliberate on emerging security challenges and future readiness.
Comprehensive deliberations were held on future warfare, multidomain operations, technological transformation and joint capability development.
The conference witnessed extensive discussions on cognitive warfare, cyber resilience against evolving quantum and AI-enabled threats, military capability development in emerging domains, indigenous innovation and AI-enabled warfighting concepts.
It was attended by Chief of Defence Staff Gen Anil Chauhan, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Dinesh Kumar Tripathi, Chief of the Army Staff Gen Upendra Dwivedi, Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal AP Singh and Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh among others.
In his remarks, Singh asked the commanders to remain "future-ready" by learning from the operation as well as the current global security landscape.
He underscored the need to strengthen capabilities in artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, data analytics and secure communication networks to stay prepared in the rapidly evolving geopolitical security scenario. He emphasised that future conflicts will increasingly be shaped by hybrid threats, information dominance and operations conducted simultaneously across cyber, space, electromagnetic and cognitive domains, according to an official readout.
Highlighting the transformative impact of emerging technologies, Singh stressed on the importance of ensuring integrated national preparedness across all spectrums of conflict, it said.
Singh's remarks at the conference came a day after the first anniversary of Operation Sindoor.
The defence minister appreciated the progress achieved in enhancing jointness, integration and technological adoption across the three services, the readout noted.
Singh said that jointness constitutes a pivotal dimension within the transformative changes sweeping across the global defence sector.
"Future wars will not be won solely through weaponry, but through innovative thinking and enhanced synergy," he said.
The defence minister exhorted the commanders to cultivate the "element of surprise" to remain unpredictable to the nation's adversaries and secure a strategic edge in any given situation.
He, however, urged them to remain vigilant of the element of surprise of the enemy and always stay two steps ahead.
Singh also reiterated the Narendra Modi government's commitment to enhancing the capabilities of the defence forces through state-of-the-art weapons and platforms. He added that special focus is being laid on research in niche domains.
During the conference, he released a documentary film on Operation Sindoor.
The film reaffirms the nation's and defence forces' commitment to operational preparedness and decisive national response capabilities.
Demonstrations of advanced systems and platforms developed for intelligence fusion, operational planning and information management were also showcased during the conference reflecting growing integration of cutting-edge technologies into joint operational structures, according to the defence ministry.
The discussions will contribute significantly towards shaping India's future military transformation and integrated operational preparedness, it said.
