Nepali students have started returning to campus: KIIT additional registrar

Students from Nepal who had previously left Bhubaneswar's Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT) following the tragic death of a Nepali girl on campus have now returned to the institution, an institution official said.

Speaking to ANI, the Additional Registrar of KIIT University, Dr Shyam Sundar Behura, said that students from Nepal have started returning, and a dedicated control room has been set up through which we are connected to the parents.

"They (students from Nepal) have started returning. A dedicated control room has been set up through which we are connected to the parents...We are having video conferencing with the parents of the students...They are convinced and they are sending their wards over here... We have also started the classes and everything is normal," Behura said.

Meanwhile, the High-Level Committee of the Odisha government probing the alleged suicide of a girl student and subsequent action against the KIIT authorities relating to Nepal students has asked Dr Achyuta Samanta, founder of the institute, to appear before it on Friday.

In a communication sent to Achyuta Samanta, the Odisha government's Director of Higher Education said that the High-Level Committee has decided to conduct an inquiry into the alleged suicide of a student and subsequent actions taken by the authorities of the university.

"Hence, you are requested to appear before the High-Level Committee on February 21 at 6.30 pm at Mini Conference Hall, New Annexe Building, State Guest House, Bhubaneswar and to adduce evidence with adequate documentary evidence before the Committee on the terms of reference," the communication said.

Earlier in the day, Nepal Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba stated that the issue of the death of a Nepali student while studying at KIIT (Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology), Odisha, is being resolved through diplomatic means.

"We immediately initiated diplomatic efforts. While we demanded justice for the deceased and legal action against the guilty, we coordinated with relevant agencies to ensure the safety and academic environment for Nepali students," Deuba said.

On February 16, the third-year BTech student was found dead in her hostel room, following which Nepali students staged a protest claiming that she was harassed by a fellow student and the college didn't act despite multiple complaints.

The accused was arrested by police on February 17 and sent to judicial custody on the same day.

On December 17, more than 500 Nepali students enrolled in the Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT) were asked to leave the campus in Bhubaneswar. In the evening, the institution retracted its decision and called back the students.