The harrowing screams of Shrutika Baranwal, a 25-year-old postgraduate at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) in Mumbai, were heard by her colleague on the last call she made before she died in the Delhi hotel fire, along with 20 others, on Wednesday.
Shrutika landed a job in Mumbai, Maharashtra by joining the campus even before she officially received her Master’s degree in Water Policy and Governance at the convocation ceremony.
Recently appointed by the Rubber, Chemicals and Polymers Skill Development Board, Shrutika traveled to Delhi to complete induction formalities before returning to Mumbai to begin her career journey in the office there.
Shrutika was among 21 people killed on Wednesday in the massive fire that engulfed a BnB facility in the Hauz Rani area of Malviya Nagar in south Delhi. Unlike many of the victims who were staying there to receive medical treatment or accompany relatives who were admitted to nearby hospitals, she arrived at work.
When the fire broke out, Shrutika was reportedly talking on the phone with her friend and colleague Aman Singh.
“I can’t forget those screams. I lost touch with her. When I couldn’t reconnect the call, I spoke to a friend who knew where she lived in Delhi and we called the police. Within a few minutes, they called us and informed us about the fire,” Singh was quoted as saying by the Indian Express newspaper.
Aman and Shrutika’s friends informed her family and cousins who live in Delhi.
Shrutika was a dedicated and academically driven student, and her commitment to tackling critical water management challenges had earned her widespread recognition, her professor Pranjal Dikshit told HT.
An earlier HT report quoted Dikshit as saying, “She was full of life and I last met her in the first week of May. She had completed her thesis on groundwater issues in Dhanbad, something that was not discussed in the public domain. She was a sincere student and it is unfortunate that she lost her life when she was about to start a new phase in her life.”
A young girl’s trip to Delhi ends in tragedy
Coming from a middle-class family in Bokaro in Jharkhand, Shrutika joined TISS with the hope of a stable and meaningful career, her friends recall. They said she felt overjoyed after getting the position.
Ritika Agrawal (25), who shared a room with Shrutika for a year during college, remembers her as cheerful and easygoing.
“Even if she made a mistake, she would handle it in a sporting manner. She was a safe place and a great listener… She was visiting Delhi for office work,” the IE report quoted her as saying.
Eklavya Prasad, managing trustee of Megh Pyne Abhiyan, an organization working in this sector in Dhanbad, mentored Shrutika while working on her thesis.
“Her work and participation in the field work was truly commendable. She was not working towards achieving goals, but with full interest and purpose, a desire to make a difference, and with the spark that we need in the social sector,” Prasad said.
TISS, condoling Baranwal’s demise, said in a post on X that her presence, aspirations and contributions will remain a cherished part of the organisation. “She will be remembered with affection, respect and gratitude by all who had the honor of knowing her,” TISS said.
