KOLKATA: In a shocking discovery, the decomposed remains of a final-year medical student were recovered from a hostel room at Kalyani JNM Hospital and Medical College in West Bengal’s Nadia district on Thursday. The student has been identified as Pulak Halder, a resident of Mograhhat in South 24 Parganas.
According to police, Halder was last seen on February 20 heading to the hostel canteen for dinner. Since then, he had not been spotted by fellow students or hostel staff, nor had he left the premises. On Thursday, a foul odor emanating from his single-occupancy room raised alarms. When there was no response from inside, authorities broke open the door to find his badly decomposed body.
Kalyani police station officers rushed to the scene, secured the body, and sent it for post-mortem examination. The exact cause of death remains undetermined, with investigators probing whether it was suicide, murder, or natural causes. Halder’s family has been informed and is cooperating with the probe.
Sources suggest Halder faced harassment from peers amid protests over the RG Kar rape-murder case and was struggling academically, though these claims await verification. The incident has sparked serious questions about student welfare in medical hostels.
Heavy police deployment has been made around the hospital to maintain order. Hospital Additional Medical Superintendent Somjyoti Banerjee stated, ‘We noticed the student wasn’t responding. Police were called, and they broke open the door to recover the decomposed body. Post-mortem will reveal the cause.’
As the investigation unfolds, the medical fraternity mourns the loss and calls for better mental health support on campus.