Image Source: Agencies

Aug 11, 2025: According to police, a schoolgirl aged 13 who allegedly set herself ablaze in a village in the Bargarh district of Odisha died from burn injuries on Monday at a Burla hospital. "The girl succumbed to burn injuries at Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (VIMSAR), Burla," Bolangir SP Abilash G, who is in charge of the Bargarh district, stated. We are investigating the reasons behind the girl taking the extreme step.”
Following complaints from her family, the SP stated that police have initiated an unnatural death (UD) investigation. He stated that the incident will be investigated by a three-member police team, and that they have also retrieved a video concerning the girl. Northern Range IG Himanshu Lal said the girl was staying in a hostel and had come to her maternal uncle's house, where she took this extreme step.
The minor had been rescued earlier in the day by villagers from a football field in Phiringmal village, which is within the boundaries of Gaisilat police station in the Bargarh district, and was only partially burned. She was rushed to VIMSAR, Burla, and then to the headquarters hospital of the Bargarh district. The latest incident follows the deaths of three other women by burning since July 12.
On that day, a 20-year-old Balasore student set herself on fire on her college campus and died on July 14 at AIIMS Bhubaneswar. A minor girl allegedly died on August 2 at AIIMS Delhi after being set on fire by three criminals on July 19. The third such incident took place in Kendrapara district on August 6, when a third-year undergraduate woman college student's charred body was found from her house under Pattamundai (rural) police station area.