From NASA intern to tragic end: Maharashtra student Nilam Shinde dies in US months after road crash

KOLHAPUR: Nilam Shinde, a 35-year-old final-year student of California State University pursuing MS in engineering, who was hit by a speeding vehicle and left in a comatose condition in Feb 2025, passed away on March 28, her relatives said.

Her funeral service was planned by relatives and friends on Tuesday at the Mount Vernon Memorial Park, California, as per Hindu rituals. The relatives told TOI that her skin and cornea had been extracted for donation after securing permission from her father, who was in Umbraj, near Karad in Satara district.

The accident took place on Feb 14 evening, two days after the first death anniversary of Nilam's mother, when she was out for a daily walk. After the accident, while Nilam was in a coma, her 69-year-old father, Tanaji, struggled to get a visa.

After the issue was brought to the notice of the Centre, mainly by MP Supriya Sule, Nilam's father got the visa and, accompanied by Nilam's cousin, left for the US. Nilam was admitted to Sacramento's UC Davis Medical Centre.

Tanaji returned to India after his two-month visa expired and gave the responsibility to one of his relatives, living nearly 250km from California, to look after her. The relative visited her every weekend.

"On March 28, the hospital administration conveyed that Nilam had passed away. Due to the war and health issues, her father could not go to the US to see her one last time. The hospital told us about organ donation. Nilam's father, without a second thought, approved, and her skin and cornea were extracted. After that, the funeral was scheduled at 1pm (local time) on Tuesday," said Sanjay Kadam, Nilam's maternal uncle.

Nilam had done her BE in computer science from the Sinhgad Institute in Pune. She subsequently completed a one-year internship at Nasa. She enrolled for MS and was in the last of the four-year course.