[MedicalMess]

See now this is why we need to pass everyone no matter what their performance.

[beyond the sea]

"On Tuesday, he came to know about his failure and was quite depressed. Today he committed suicide after having lunch with us,"

At least he ate ........

[claudiustg]

He could have just gotten Advanced Thermodynamics and Advanced Fluid-Mechanics for Dummies like everyboby else.

[MedicalMess]

HarmlessLovableFuzzball?

Hey what are you doing using Rush Limbaughs handle?

[DTogo]

He should have celebrated the likelihood of not becoming an engineer!

(ducks from incoming slide rules)

[Lurker]

I seem to remember that a few years ago there was a spate of Japanese students killing themselves because of poor grades.

It may just be me, but I think a remedial class in advanced fluid dynamics might be more in order than a hangmans noose.

Of course this is India where 'classism' is rampant. It's hard to tell from the article but apparently some other students think this young man may have been treated unfairly somehow. It is possible that a higher caste professor might not cotton to a lower caste student for some reason.

L

[Dallas59]

He made room for persons that can handle life and failure. No sympathy from me. Suicide is a choice.

[Gengis Khan]

If you are in the IITs you have got to be an absolute hardcore. IIT is no place for the average or the mentally weak.

[Berlin_Freeper]

"advanced thermodynamics and advanced fluid-mechanics"

Heat rises, and fluids seek the lowest point of gravity.

How can you fail THAT???

I am surprised he was smart enough to hang himself.

[Rightwing Conspiratr1]

I suspect knowing you won't be doing the jobs Americans don't want to do was a bit too much for him. No coveted H1B visa and $10 per hour American engineering job for him.

[Caipirabob]

Scary. We put a lot of emphasis on school performance for our children. I wonder if it's too much. We always give the speech "You're not competing against your fellow students, you're competing against the entire world..." Then we list what bright children in other countries are doing to excel in school. Our children are wonderful, but probably average in school (but they get straight A's, I simply mean that they have to work to earn those A's.) So explaining to them why it's important to do the very best they can is an ongoing thing.

So I think I'll need to watch for signs I push too hard. My eldest is taking advanced course for his grade, but we will never expect or push for him to skip a level. We recognize that emotional maturity is every bit as important as scholastic capability. He's going to stay with his friends and do Cub Scouts and play Yu-gi-oh like all his friends. I just pray that we can balance our efforts with his needs as a child.

This tragic loss is a lesson for parents and students alike.

[Hoodat]

IIT-K officials claimed that the student might have taken the extreme step under depression after coming to know that he had failed in two courses —advanced thermodynamics and advanced fluid-mechanics.

Transport II I can understand, but Thermo II? Fail that twice, and it's time to change majors.

[saalebhosdike]

We want to know whether Shailesh was intentionally being harassed by the authorities," said an enraged student.

I am from one of the IITs, and the above statement can have merit. Have known a student to flunk 4 years because a senior professor he has a disagreement with would not pass him. People fail courses in IIT. And Thermo and Flu Mech are deadly subjects. If one fails too many times (or does not get the required no. of course credits an year, he/she is asked to drop out). And no degree till all 'required' courses have been cleared. I can understand the frustration and depression that he's gone through. IIT would have seemed like a prison to him. The IITs don't really have the medical councelling services that might be required to deal with such cases. Poor kid. RIP.

[demoRat watcher]

I guess he couldn't take (or calculate) the pressure.

[GingisK]

Quick! Somebody hack into the school's computer and give them all bad grades!

[TXnMA]

"—advanced thermodynamics and advanced fluid-mechanics."

Ah, yes -- two of those courses that convince advanced chemistry students that, by comparison, all "liberal arts" courses are trivially easy time-wasters to occupy the mentally deficient... '-}