Mangaluru: Medical student kills self in hostel room by slitting throat

Mangaluru, Aug 2: In a bizarre incident, a postgraduate medical student slit his throat after self-administering local anaesthesia in his college hostel room here recently.

The deceased is Prasad HK (28), a native of Davangere, who was a final year MD (Pathology) student of Fr Muller Medical College. The incident comes close on the heels of a SSLC student allegedly committing suicide at Alva's Education Foundation.

Prasad is suspected to have taken the extreme step sometime between July 29 and July 31. Police have found a nine-page suicide note in the room which states that he suffered from depression, a signed cheque of Rs 4 lakh pasted on a wall, an anaesthesia bottle and a syringe.

According to sources of Mangaluru South police station, where a case has been registered, the suicide came to light on Monday when calls made by Prasad's family members on his mobile phone elicited no response, following which they contacted his friends. When Prasad's friends went to his hostel room, they found him dead. They then informed the hostel warden and police.

Before committing suicide, Prasad signed a cheque of Rs 4 lakh in the name of his elder brother, a physician. Police said the nine-page suicide note confirmed that he suffered from depression.

Cops are investigating how Prasad procured local anaesthesia without prescription. "We will conduct a detailed probe. Everything recovered from the room will be sent to forensic science laboratory," said Hanumantharaya, DCP (Traffic and Crime).

"While local anaesthesia used for minor surgeries such as removal of wart or sutures is freely available, those used for major surgeries and included Schedule H drug category are only available to qualified anaesthetists," said a practicing anaesthetist.

A senior functionary at Father Muller Charitable Institution privy to the developments said that it was unethical from a doctor to self-administer anaesthesia without proper prescription. He said that Prasad was undergoing treatment for depression and that he consumed alcohol in large quantity and other drugs before ending his life. He had a Karnataka Medical Council number and might have used it to procure local anaesthesia for himself.