A young Indian student’s untimely death in California, USA, has left his home country and everyone who felt the impact of his “dependable” energy grieving. Even his alma mater IIT Madras‘ entrepreneurship cell joined in to pay him a heartwarming tribute on social media after the shocking news broke out over the weekend.
22-year-old Saketh Sreenivasaiah was pursuing his Master’s in Science degree at the University of California, Berkeley, when his body was recovered from Lake Anza in America on Saturday afternoon, February 14 (US time). The unexpected news came days after the bright student, originally from Karnataka in India, went missing from his US university.
Over the weekend, the Indian Consulate in San Francisco confirmed the heart-rending news of his passing after local authorities’ days-long search involving sonar, drones and divers ended with a body’s recovery from the reservoir within the Tilden Regional Park, in the Berkeley Hills above Berkeley.
E-Cell IIT Madras’ tribute to Indian student Saketh Sreenivasaiah
Saketh completed his Bachelor of Technology in Chemical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, aka IIT Madras, in June 2025, as per his professional LinkedIn account. Only after that did he enroll in the MS program at UC Berkeley in August 2025.
During his time at IIT Madras, Saketh emerged as an integral member of the college’s E-Cell. As per his LinkedIn, he joined the team as an ‘Associate Executive’ in February 2022, and soon transitioned to the ‘Executive – Development & Associations’ post. In June 2023, he finally took on the role of ‘Head – Growth & Strategic Initiatives.’
Inevitably, IIT Madras’ E-Cell still recognises him as one of the past “Core Team” members. On Sunday, his former team took to their official LinkedIn platform to pen an emotional farewell to the alum.
“We are deeply shocked and saddened by the untimely passing of our former Core Team member Saketh Sreenivasaiah in Berkeley, California,” they began. They described him as a “kind, humble and grounded person – approachable in every sense, and someone who consistently showed up with quiet dedication and sincerity.”
Further reminiscing his time spent with the old team, the E-Cell admitted that everyone who worked with him in the past knew that he wasn’t just “dependable and hardworking, but also genuinely warm and thoughtful in the way he treated people.”
Honouring the Karnataka student’s contributions to the team, the post added, “He played an integral role in shaping the organization during his time at IIT Madras, especially through his efforts in setting up and strengthening the Growth and Strategic Initiatives vertical – work that continues to impact E-Cell and the community we serve.”
“His absence will be felt deeply. Our heartfelt condolences are with his family, friends, and everyone grieving this loss. May his soul rest in peace,” E-Cell IIT Madras concluded the tribute, sharing a few pictures from the time when Saketh Sreenivasaiah was still with the team.
What happened to UC Berkeley student Saketh Sreenivasaiah?
Around the same time, Saketh’s roommate at UC Berkeley also penned a grieving note after his friend’s body was recovered from Lake Anza.
In a separate LinkedIn post, Baneet Singh recollected that Sreenivasaiah had “stopped caring,” started “eating less and engaging less, only surviving on chips and cookies” just days before he went missing. Meanwhile, The Berkeley Scanner reported earlier this week that Saketh is said to have been upset about a relationship. Official details surrounding his death have yet to be confirmed by the authorities.
His backpack, passport and laptop was found on a doorstep in the Park Hills neighbourhood next to Tilden Regional Park, as per US reports, before his body was discovered.
Initially, US reports citing local authorities did not definitively name the victim whose mortal remains were found in Lake Anza. Hours later, the Indian Consulate shared via X, “The Consulate deeply regrets to inform that local police have confirmed the recovery of the body of the missing Indian student, Saketh Sreenivasaiah.”
However, as his family is struggling to come to terms with the shocking news, they are also speculating a “case of mistaken identity.”
Saketh Sreenivasaiah’s father, Srinivasaiah Thammannagowda, spoke to MLC Arathi Krishna, who serves as the deputy chairman of the NRI Forum of Karnataka, on Sunday. He told the official that their family would only accept that Saketh was dead if they saw his dead body. “Till then, we believe he is alive,” the father asserted,” according to the Indian Express.
As per a previous PTI report, Saketh’s father said that he last spoke to his son on or about February 8 (or 9), which happens to be a day before the Indian student went missing.
According to Karnataka Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh’s urgent plea letter to India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, Saketh’s whereabouts were unknown for days despite a formal complaint being lodged with the Berkeley Police Department (Case No. 26-6726).
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