Indian Student Saketh Sreenivasaiah Found Dead in US, Remembering Batchmate Kedar
Indian Student Saketh Sreenivasaiah Found Dead in US, Remembering Batchmate Kedar
22-year-old Indian student Saketh Sreenivasaiah was found dead in California after a missing case; his last LinkedIn post mourned batchmate Kedar amid IIT-M incident recalls.
Saketh Sreenivasaiah, 22, an Indian student who had graduated from IIT Madras, was found dead in a California lake after a six-day search. He had been a postgraduate student at the University of California, Berkeley and had been reported missing since February 9. His body was located near a lake at Tilden Regional Park, not far from Berkeley. In a July 2025 LinkedIn post celebrating his convocation, he remembered his batchmate Kedar and wrote, “This milestone would’ve been much better alongside my dearest friend and batchmate Kedar.” The post included a photo from the IIT-M convocation, underscoring a moment of achievement in his life while the circumstances around his disappearance and death remain under investigation. The reference to Kedar, who died in 2023, points to a pattern of tragedy in the same IIT Madras batch of 2021–25 and has drawn renewed attention to student well-being far from home. Kedar Suresh Chougule, who studied Chemical Engineering, was found dead in his IIT-M hostel room in April 2023 after a period of emotional struggle and mental health support, and his death was reported as the fourth suicide linked to IIT Madras within a few months. IIT Madras had said it was taking all possible measures to proactively identify and help students under stress. Saketh’s LinkedIn post, created long after his graduation, reveals how these pressures can echo across communities, even as individuals celebrate milestones. The Indian Consulate in the United States said it would provide all assistance to Saketh’s family, including help with repatriation of his mortal remains to India. This case has sparked conversations about mental health resources for international students and the responsibilities of educational institutions to monitor and support student welfare, both in India and abroad. Saketh’s family and friends are awaiting further details as authorities continue their inquiries and the consulate coordinates with local authorities on the next steps.
