Mysterious deaths of Indian students in US cast spotlight on safety and pursuit of American dream
- The deaths have cast a spotlight on students from India who are studying in the US, many of whom are from Andhra Pradesh and Telangana
- An increasing number of these students are facing challenges such as working illegally to finance their studies and drug abuse
For the past month, TB, who prefers to use his initials, has been flooded with messages at his university in Boston from fellow students from the southern Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana over safety concerns.
They were worried after three students from these states were found dead in mysterious circumstances in Connecticut while another was attacked by robbers in Ohio over the period.
“The incidents have created a sense of risk in the minds of these students, and for some, their hopes of achieving their goals have been shattered,” TB, an Indian American, who is studying computer science at a private university, told This Week In Asia. “As a community, we have extended support for one another,” said TB, whose parents are from Andhra Pradesh.
The spate of deaths has cast the spotlight on students from India, especially those from Andhra Pradesh and Telangana – the two states which account for the largest number of students from India studying in the US every year.
So far this year, at least six Indian students have reportedly died under mysterious circumstances in the US - three of them are from the two Telugu-speaking southern Indian states.
In early February, a student who hailed from Telangana was found dead in Ohio. Although foul play was reportedly ruled out, Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy has claimed on social media that the student died from a physical attack. Another student from the same Indian state was allegedly robbed and assaulted in Chicago on February 4.
