Team Goemkarponn
PILANI/VERNA: The recent drug-linked death of MSc Physics student Rushi (Rishi) Nair has pushed BITS Pilani into an unprecedented security overhaul, with Verna police now stationed at the campus gates to check all parcels and the institute completing the installation of nearly 600 CCTV cameras across its hostels and common areas.
Nair, 21, was found dead in his hostel room earlier this month. What first appeared to be accidental choking was later confirmed through forensic tests to involve drugs, marking the first such case on the campus and sparking outrage among parents, locals, and political groups. His death was the fifth at the institute in nine months, intensifying questions over safety, mental health, and substance abuse in one of India’s top educational institutions.
The parcel checks, introduced this week, have already led to action: on Thursday police intercepted a food order containing a cigarette packet, destroyed it, and issued a warning to the delivery company. Senior officers including DIG Varsha Sharma and SP South Tikam Singh Verma have since visited the campus, reviewed hostel layouts, and advised officials on tightening checks at all entry and exit points.
Meanwhile, BITS Pilani has expanded its surveillance infrastructure, placing cameras in every hostel corridor and common area. “Earlier, cameras were only at hostel gates. Now every hostel corridor and common space has round-the-clock surveillance,” a senior official said, adding that the project was fast-tracked following a student death last December.
Authorities say the dual measures of parcel screening and CCTV monitoring are designed to reassure anxious parents and curb narcotics inflow, even as critics caution that enforcement alone will not address deeper concerns over student welfare and mental health.
With the investigation into Nair’s death still in progress, both the police and the institute are under pressure to restore confidence in campus safety.
