A 20-year-old student has fallen to his death from the sixth level of a hostel in Kota, India, according to local police.
The safety mesh of the balcony reportedly gave way, causing the man to lose his balance and fall through. He passed away on the spot.
Police have confirmed that investigations into the matter are now ongoing.
The Hindustan Times reports that Ishanshu Bhattacharya, a student from West Bengal, arrived in Kota last August for India’s medical entrance exam.
At the time of the incident, he was with three friends on a balcony on the hostel’s sixth floor.
While preparing to return to their rooms around midnight, Bhattacharya is believed to have leaned against the safety wiring of the balcony to put his shoes on.
Source: Twitter
This was when the panel gave way and he fell through.
The police said in a statement on Friday (3 Feb) that the mesh may have been unable to support his weight and broke as a result.
Source: Twitter
Bhattacharya died on the spot and was declared dead when brought to the hospital.
Authorities have sent his body to a mortuary for postmortem, which will occur only when his family arrives.
Investigations into his death are still ongoing, Ary News reports.
Footage of the incident was also posted on Twitter and went viral, with netizens expressing outrage.
Users called for the hostel to assume responsibility, saying that poor management had led to Bhattacharya’s death.
Source: Twitter
One netizen labelled the tragedy as “heart-wrenching”, urging authorities to take action against the establishment.
Source: Twitter
In a similar incident, a 17-year-old Indian student nearly suffered the same fate while preparing for an engineering entrance exam in Kota on 29 Jan.
He fell from the balcony on the first floor of his hostel, sustaining critical injuries.
The student is still undergoing treatment at a local hospital.
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Featured image adapted from Twitter.
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