Research student injured in lab mishap at IIT-Madras

The mishap occurred when she was experimenting with nitric acid in a container and it exploded injuring her abdomen and hands. She was alone in the lab, her classmates said.

According to a student requesting anonymity, Shelly Agarwal is a first year Ph.D student of electrical engineering and was experimenting with nitric acid inside the electrical engineering laboratory. Concentrated nitric acid was inside a glass bottle, which suddenly broke. The glass pieces got into her system as it was almost like an explosion because of which she bled which led to complications. She has been admitted to Apollo Hospital.

“Last night she had a surgery wherein all the glass pieces from her system had to be removed. Mostly her abdomen and hands were injured. She lost a lot of blood.

After the operation when the glass pieces were removed, then she started gaining stability,” the student said.

Her friends have also taken to Facebook and WhatsApp to ask for additional units of blood. Twenty units of B+ve blood were required by Fridaymorning. Shelly’s guide requesting anonymity said the operation was successful and she has got back her senses. “The doctors asked us to be patient,” he said.

People were around but not near the place where she was working. A few students alleged that lab protocols were not being enforced properly. “She was a first year Ph.D student. Some seniors should have been there. How come a first year student is allowed to experiment all alone?” questioned a mechanical engineering student.

“A senior student should have been with her. Lab attendants do not check all these.”

An IIT-M official refused to comment on the allegation saying it was not the right time to talk about it.