Indian student dies in US
New York: In yet another tragic incident, an Indian student died in Boston and initial investigation has ruled out any foul play, officials said on Monday.
“Deeply saddened to learn about the unfortunate demise of Mr. Abhijeeth Paruchuru, an Indian student in Boston,” the Consulate General of India in New York said in a post on X. Paruchuru’s parents, who reside in Connecticut, are in constant contact with the investigators. The consulate has confirmed that the initial findings do not suggest any foul play.
The consulate has provided assistance in paperwork and transportation of Paruchuru’s mortal remains to India and continues to stay in touch with local authorities and the Indian-American community regarding the matter.
Sources revealed that the last rites of 20-year-old Paruchuru have been performed in his native place, Tenali in Andhra Pradesh. TEAM Aid, a US-based nonprofit organization, assisted in transporting his mortal remains to India.
Since the onset of 2024, there has been a disturbing increase in the number of deaths among Indian and Indian-origin students in the US, causing concern within the community.
In March, Amarnath Ghosh, a 34-year-old Indian classical dancer and student at Washington University, was fatally shot in St Louis, Missouri. Ghosh, a Kuchipudi and Bharatnatyam dancer, had moved to the US from West Bengal the previous year to pursue his passion for dance.
In February, Sameer Kamath, a 23-year-old Indian-American student at Purdue University, was found lifeless in an Indiana nature preserve. On February 2, Vivek Taneja, a 41-year-old Indian-origin IT executive, sustained severe injuries during an assault outside a Washington restaurant.
A week prior to that, Syed Mazahir Ali, an Indian student, was assaulted by robbers in Chicago. Earlier, 25-year-old Indian student Vivek Saini was fatally attacked in Lithonia city, Georgia, by a homeless drug addict.
In January, 19-year-old Shreyas Reddy Beniger, a student at the Lindner School of Business in Ohio State, was found dead, although local authorities ruled out any foul play. Another Indian student, Neel Acharya at Purdue University, Indiana, was confirmed dead days after being reported missing on January 28. Akul B Dhawan, an 18-year-old at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, was found dead last month, showing signs of hypothermia.
These series of attacks on Indians and Indian-origin individuals prompted the officials of the Indian Embassy in Washington and its consulates at various places to hold a virtual interaction with Indian students across the US, discussing student well-being and ways to stay connected with the larger diaspora.
The interaction, led by Charge d’Affaires, Ambassador Sripriya Ranganathan, saw participation from about 150 Indian Student Association office bearers and students from 90 US universities. The Consul Generals of India in Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, New York, San Francisco, and Seattle also attended the event.
