Nepal may stop issuing NOC to students wishing to study in Odisha if situation not resolved

Kathmandu: The Nepal government on Tuesday said that it may stop issuing no objection certificates to students who wish to study in institutes in Odisha if the situation arising from the death of a student at a Bhubaneswar university is not resolved in a “justifiable and legal way”.

Prakriti Lamsal (20), a third-year B Tech (computer science) student at Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT), allegedly died by suicide at her hostel room on Sunday afternoon, leading to unrest on the campus.

Nepal’s Ministry of Education, Science and Technology in a statement said that it may suspend issuance of no objection certificate (NOC) in the future to students wishing to study in any university or educational institutions in Odisha.

The ministry also appealed to the concerned people, including the guardians and students of the university, for observing patience and said the ministry has formed a help desk to facilitate effective resolution of the problems arising from the incident.

“The ministry is continuously making diplomatic efforts through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to ensure a conducive environment for resuming the studies of Nepalese students,” the statement said.

Meanwhile, members of Parliament, including Shishir Khanal, Bina Lama, Sita Mijar, Sher Bahadur Kunwar and Shanti Bika, raised the issue related to the KIIT incident in the House of Representatives during zero hour on Tuesday.

They extended condolences to the bereaved family members on the sad demise of Nepalese student Prakriti Lamsal in KIIT and asked the government to make necessary diplomatic efforts to ensure serious inquiry of the mysterious death of the student and resolve the problems related to other Nepalese students studying in KIIT.

Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba has said that the ministry is continuously following up on the death of the Nepali student in KIIT and the situation that developed thereafter.

“Two senior police officers from Nepalese Embassy in New Delhi have reached the college on Tuesday morning to learn about the situation and to ensure safety of Nepalese students,” Foreign Minister Deuba wrote on X.

“I have telephoned the security officials to provide necessary help to the Nepalese students studying in the KIIT and to ensure their safe return to the hostel through coordination with the Indian security personnel and the college administration,” she said.

“The Foreign Ministry and Nepalese Embassy in New Delhi are doing needful by keeping coordination with the college administration and the Indian security agency in this regard,” she added.

Meanwhile, the Odisha Police on Tuesday handed over the body of the Nepali girl student to her father after post mortem at AIIMS Bhubaneswar, even as the incident triggered a statewide outcry with the issue being raised in the Assembly.

Sunil Lamsal, the girl’s father, accompanied by his friends, arrived here and remained present during the post mortem of the body. Sunil said that they were planning to take the body to Nepal.