Washington:

A prominent Indian diaspora group has urged U.S. government agencies, universities and student associations to work together to address the surge in deaths of Indian-origin students in the U.S. in recent months.

Analysis by the Foundation for India and Indian Diaspora Studies (FIIDS) found that the causes of these incidents include suspicious shootings/kidnappings, environmental deaths due to lack of safety knowledge (carbon monoxide poisoning, hypothermia), mental issues leading to suicide, and even suspicious Violent crime incidents.

FIIDS said authorities should increase safety education, improve search and rescue procedures and implement stricter regulations on fraternity harassment; increase risk and safety awareness and provide mental health support.

Since the beginning of 2024, at least six Indians and Indian-origin students have died in the United States.

A 25-year-old Indian student who had been missing since last month was found dead in the US city of Cleveland this week.

Police are investigating the death of Uma Satya Sai Gadde, an Indian student in Ohio last week.

Last month, Amarnath Ghosh, a 34-year-old trained classical dancer from India, was shot and killed in St. Louis, Missouri.

Last month, the consulate posted on X about the death of Abhijeeth Paruchuru, a 20-year-old Indian student in Boston. Paruchulu’s parents, who live in Connecticut, have been in direct contact with detectives and a preliminary investigation into his death ruled out foul play.

On February 5, Samir Kamath, a 23-year-old Indian-American student at Purdue University, was found dead in a nature reserve in Indiana.

On February 2, 41-year-old Indian IT executive Vivek Taneja was attacked outside a restaurant in Washington and suffered serious and life-threatening injuries. In another tragedy, 25-year-old Indian student Vivek Saini was beaten to death by a homeless drug addict in Georgia.

The surge in the tragic deaths of Indian students in the United States has caused serious concern among the Indian-American community and the Indian public.

Dr. Lakshmi Thalanki from Boston, who collected data on the deaths of more than 10 students, said: “The sudden surge in student deaths in India is alarming and suspicious.”

On Tuesday, FIIDS submitted various recommendations to the State Department, Justice Department, Education Department, universities, student organizations and the Indian-American community.

Rumors about potential hate crimes have circulated in the Indian-American community since the sudden increase in suspicious deaths, with many of the deaths clustered around colleges in the East and Midwest, particularly in Cleveland, Ohio, Illinois and Indiana. .

FIDDS said some of them were concerned that negative publicity against the community would fuel hate crimes.

“Although FIIDS did not find any corroborating facts to support the rumours, they may need to be investigated before their concerns can be addressed promptly,” a media release said.

“According to the Open Doors Report (ODR), there are 275,000 Indian-origin students, accounting for 25% of the total number of foreign students, generating $9 billion in tuition and expenses annually,” the report said.

Khanderao Kand, director of policy and strategy at FIDS, said: “However, the recent increase in deaths is concerning and, if not addressed, will impact confidence in the safety of U.S. universities and may further impact student safety. Inflow.”

FIIDS also announced the launch of a survey on concerns and safety among Indian-American students.

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