Bhubaneswar: Police have circulated pictures of a 19-year-old MBBS student at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here after he allegedly went on missing from the state capital on February 9.

The cops have traced the last mobile location of the second year student, Suhail Aijaz Kataria from Kashmir's Kupwara district, near Calcutta on the morning of February 10.

While Suhail left the institute after telling his friends that he was going to attend a friend's wedding in Chandigarh, the institute authorities lodged a missing complaint with Khandagiri police on February 18.

The police later searched his room and found a latter addressed to his parents and friends in which he had written "I Quit". The cops suspect that the youth had written the letter due to academic pressure. His father, Aijaz Ahmad Kataria, later confirmed that the handwriting in the letter was that of his son.

"Investigations revealed that Suhail had failed in first year physiology and anatomy courses. He later cleared both the subjects in the supplementary examination. However, the institute's faculty members and his friends have said that he was an average student," said a police officer.

Suhail's father, who has been camping in the state capital, is hopeful of his son's return. "He was the most gifted among six of my children and I don't find any reason behind his disappearance. He had called his brother on February 9 and asked him not to call him for three to four days as he would be sending his mobile for repairs. He also said that he would call them once he got his phone back. But when we found his phone switched off for days, we decided to visit the institute," said his father, a schoolteacher.

Police commissioner Y.B. Khurania said Sahail's mobile was last traced to Howrah in Bengal. "We are in constant touch with our counterparts in Bengal to trace him. Besides, we have also shared his details with police in other states as well," said Khurania.

Aijaz said he had interacted with his son's friends and did not think Suhail was under pressure from his conversations with them. "The campus environment is good and the reason behind his disappearance can only be ascertained once he returns," he said.