A 16-year-old boy has pleaded guilty to killing an Indian student in Melbourne in January last year.

Nitin Garg, 21, was on his way to work at a fast food restaurant in West Footscray in Melbourne's west when he was stabbed.

The accounting graduate, in Australia on a student visa, staggered to a nearby restaurant where his friends tried to help him.

He died early the next day in hospital.

His killer, who cannot be named, has pleaded guilty to one count of murder in the Victorian Supreme Court.

He also pleaded guilty to the attempted theft of Mr Garg's mobile phone.

He has been remanded in custody to appear in the Supreme Court for a pre-sentence hearing in June.

Last year another 16-year-old involved in the killing pleaded guilty to being an accessory.

Mr Garg's murder sparked outrage in India, coming after a series of attacks on Indians in Victoria, sparking fears it would put Australia's multi-billion-dollar international student sector at risk.

The then deputy prime minister Julia Gillard condemned the attack, while the Indian government warned it could affect bilateral ties.

The killing also prompted the introduction of random weapons searches by Victorian police at railway stations to tackle knife-related crime.

- ABC/AAP