Indian student, pursuing PhD from London School of Economics, killed in bicycle accident

An Indian student pursuing PhD from the London School of Economics (LSE) tragically died in a bicycle accident on March 19. Cheistha Kochhar, 33, who hailed from Gurgaon, was hit by a lorry while returning home.

According to a report by The Times of India, Kochhar was killed on the spot. Her husband was cycling a few metres ahead of her when the incident happened. Despite the best efforts by the police and paramedics, Kochhar couldn’t be revived. According to the report, the garbage vehicle driver cooperated with the authorities during investigation. No arrests have been made so far but investigations are ongoing.

Kochhar was born in Uttar Pradesh’s Bareilly and had moved to London in September to pursue a PhD in organisational behaviour management on a full scholarship. Before this, she had worked in NITI Aayog and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, according to her LinkedIn profile. She also studied and taught at the University of Chicago.

"My super talented and super special friend @cheisthakochhar was meant to be a newsmaker of a different kind. Terrible tragedy. Gone too soon…,” Cheistha’s friend Prasanna Karthik said in a post on X.