Kota, Jul 23 (PTI): A 17-year-old IIT aspirant from Bihar allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself from the ceiling fan of his hostel room in Indira Vihar area of the city, police said today.

Prince Kumar Singh, a resident of Motihari district of Bihar who had arrived at Kota a month ago, is the twelfth student to have died in the coaching hub this year.

He was preparing for an engineering entrance exam at a coaching institute here, said Radha Kishan, ASI at Vigyannagar police station. No suicide note was found in his room. The body has been sent for post-mortem, he said.

The deceased boy was also reported to have spoken on phone to his parents in Bihar just minutes before he took the extreme step last night, the ASI added. Police have lodged a case under section 174 of CrPC in this connection.

His attendance record and performance in studies have been sought from the coaching institute's management while his hostel mates are being questioned to ascertain the exact reason behind the step, Kishan said.

This is the second suicide by a coaching student from Bihar. On July 5, a medical aspirant identified as Nikhil Kumar (20), from Bhagalpur, Bihar was found hanging in his hostel room in Kunhadi police station area of the city.