A team of researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati (IIT-G) have developed energy-efficient bricks.
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

Guwahati:

Days after massive protests erupted over the alleged student suicide, the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati on Friday announced several initiatives to address the issue.

IIT Guwahati, which has seen four student suicides this year, said it has conducted a thorough investigation into each of these cases and has identified several factors contributing to these tragic events.

The Institute, where a third-year Computer Science student allegedly died by suicide this month, announced that a one-time medical checkup will be mandatory at the time of admission.

“While many of these incidents were non-academic in nature, they underscore the urgent need for enhanced support systems and preventative measures to safeguard the well-being of our students,” the Institute said in a statement.

To address these concerns, IIT Guwahati has implemented the following initiatives:

Comprehensive Medical Checkups:

Recognizing the importance of understanding students’ medical history, IIT Guwahati has introduced a mandatory one-time medical checkup at the time of admission. This will enable the Institute to provide tailored support and ensure students receive the necessary care, it said.

Open Dialogue:

The Institute has encouraged students to come forward and discuss any challenges they may be facing. A self-sustainable task force has been established to reach out to every student and provide the necessary support.

Enhanced Counseling Services:

In addition to existing counseling resources, the Institute is prioritizing the establishment of dedicated counseling services at the hostel level.

Faculty Advisory System:

To ensure students receive timely academic guidance and support, the faculty advisory system has been strengthened.

Massive Protests Over Student’s Death At IIT Guwahati 

Thousands of students had protested earlier this month, boycotting classes after a student’s death by suicide on September 2. The student, from Uttar Pradesh, was found hanging in his hostel room. 

It was the fourth student death at IIT Guwahati this year; an engineering student allegedly died by suicide on August 9.

The students demanded an investigation and accountability, believing that the institute had failed to respond to students’ complaints of mental harassment and stress.

Many students have raised concerns about the mental well-being of those studying at the institute and the role of the administration in creating a stressful academic environment.

The administration was urged to take immediate steps to address the issues flagged and improve support for students struggling with mental health challenges.

Students halted their protests after the dean of the institute, Professor Kanduru V Krishna, resigned.

Guwahati:

The death of a 21-year-old student has sparked anger at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)-Guwahati, with his friends accusing the administration of being insensitive towards students and parents. A massive protest erupted on the campus last evening as they alleged grades have become more important than student lives at the institute. The student from Uttar Pradesh was found dead in his hostel room, the fourth such death at the prestigious institute this year. It is now being alleged that the students were stopped from breaking open the hostel room door when the body was first noticed.

Speaking to NDTV, a student claimed they were also stopped from informing the dead student’s family and an attempt to delete videos from their phones by the administration.

“I saw through the ventilator my friend was hanging from the fan. The guards stopped us from breaking the door. It took almost 30 minutes before it could be opened. Whether he was alive or not wasn’t their concern,” he said requesting anonymity.

He said that after the door was opened, the security personnel didn’t allow the nurse to check his pulses.

“We lost him, but the body was not brought down the entire night. It was taken down eight hours after the door was opened,” he added.

The student alleged the guards did nothing due to orders from the administration.

“The dean and chairperson of the Hostel Affairs Board came and stopped the students from informing the student’s family of the dead student and tried to delete video evidence of the situation,” said the student.

A response is awaited from the institute on this allegation.

The incident sparked a massive protest as the students questioned the effectiveness of the institute’s mental health and welfare support systems. The student’s body has been sent for post-mortem to Gauhati Medical College and Hospital.

In a statement, an institute spokesperson said the IIT-G is deeply saddened by the student’s death and extended condolences to his family and friends.

“IITG remains dedicated to prioritising the mental health and well-being of our student community during these challenging times,” the spokesperson further added.

Guwahati:

The father of the arrested IIT-Guwahati student, who had allegedly pledged allegiance to terror group ISIS, on Tuesday said his son had spoken to his family members in Delhi that he would not continue with his studies and had other plans.

The accused Touseef Ali Farouqui, a fourth-year B Tech student of the Bioscience department was arrested under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act on March 24. He is now in police custody.

”I live in Siwan in Bihar but he was with my wife in Delhi. My son had told her about not continuing with his studies as he had other plans,” the student’s father Asmat Ali Farouqui told reporters outside a court where his son was brought for some formality.

He will be produced in the court on Wednesday when his police remand ends.

”Definitely, there was something which his mother knew about but kept that hidden from the others,” the senior Farouqui said.

His wife who also came to the court did not speak to the media.

The student’s father claimed that the police did not allow him to talk to his son during the day.

His parents had arrived here on Friday and had gone to the police station where he was lodged to meet him the next day.

His father did not say anything about what transpired during the meeting.

The senior Farouqui denied speculations that he is separated with his wife and said he lived in Bihar to look after his agricultural land.

The accused was detained on March 23 at Hajo in Kamrup district and arrested the next day under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and UAPA.

Assam Police’s Special Task Force (STF) Inspector General Parthasarathi Mahanta had earlier said that after interrogating him, police found credible evidence of his links with ISIS and he was arrested.

The student was detained three days after the ISIS India head Haris Farooqi alias Harish Ajmal Farukhi and his associate Anurag Singh alias Rehan were arrested in Dhubri district after they had crossed over from Bangladesh.

STF Additional Superintendent of Police Kalyan Kumar Pathak had told reporters that the student had sent an email, in which he claimed that he was on the way to join ISIS.

A black flag, “apparently similar to that of ISIS”, was found in his hostel room and has been sent for verification to specialised agencies which deal with proscribed outfits.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Image used for representative purpose only. File
| Photo Credit: Getty Images

GUWAHATI

A team of researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati (IIT-G) have developed pharmaceutical and food products from tea factory wastes. 

Tea is one of the most widely consumed beverages on the globe with the world tea consumption expected to rise to 7.4 million tonnes from the current 6.3 million tonnes by 2025.

The increase in tea consumption leads to an increase in the generation of tea waste, leading to non-utilisation of valuable agricultural resources.  

The team led by Mihir Kumar Purkait of IITG’s Department of Chemical Engineering undertook a project to efficiently utilise the high lignin and low inorganic content in tea industry wastes. The outcome was a range of products for use in the pharmaceutical and food processing industries.

The range of innovative value-added products developed in their laboratory at IIT Guwahati includes low-cost antioxidant-rich supplements designed to provide an affordable healthier lifestyle option by harnessing green tea’s potential properties, and organic preservatives for extending the shelf life of vegetable and fruit juices for up to one year, ensuring long-lasting freshness. 

Among the other products are biochar for waste reduction and environmental restoration including carbon sequestration, micro and nano-crystalline cellulose tailored for intelligent packaging, and carbon quantum dots currently being explored for detecting harmful contaminants in water bodies. 

The research team comprising Somnath Chanda, Prangan Duarah, and Banhisikha Debnath apart from Prof Purkait has filed multiple patents on the basis of these developments. 

The findings of these studies have been published in various international journals including the International Journal of Biological Macromolecules, Chemosphere, and Critical Reviews in Biotechnology. 

“The convenience and health benefits of catechin-based capsules open a promising avenue, offering users access to the advantages of catechins without the necessity of multiple cups of green tea. This caters to the increasing demand for antioxidant-rich supplements in our daily routines,” Professor Purkait said. 

The products from tea factory waste can have a wide range of applications that include food-grade activated carbon as an alternative to synthetic food colourant and natural-based mild abrasive material in toiletries such as toothpaste and body washes, he said.