Govt swings into action after Thar suicides

Police, civil administration mobilise medical, social interventions in poverty-hit district

HYDERABAD:

With poverty, malnutrition and domestic violence continuing to compel the people to take their own lives, the district
administration has sought intervention of the Sindh Mental Health Authority while the police are mobilising the civil society activists to sensitise communities.

Tharparkar Deputy Commissioner Lal Dino Mangi on Tuesday wrote a letter to the authority's chairperson, Senator
Dr Karim Ahmed Khawaja and apprised him that 65 people in his district have committed suicide since January this year.

Pointing out the main causes of suicides in the poverty stricken district, he said people are taking their lives "...due to starvation, poor health facilities, unemployment, poverty, drug abuse, domestic violence and debt mafia." He said the Sindh Human Rights Commission has also been informed about the suicide trends in the sand-swept Thar.

According to Mangi, the local police are also working to identify the causes which leave the people with no choice except to kill themselves. The DC pointed out that the loan sharks, who lend money to poor people against very high markup rates, have been identified as one of the leading factors.

"The desert pockets are prone to exploitation by politically influential people and the mafia which trap the poor under heavy loans," he disclosed.

Mangi stated that he has been requesting the police to take action against such elements. The DC also underlined the problem of availability of poison which is often consumed by the people attempting suicides.

Read 41 commit suicide in Thatta district during April

He said the Peoples Primary Healthcare Initiative has been requested to address that menace. The DC suggested the Sindh Mental Health Authority to set up a full time rescue center staffed by neurologists, psychiatrists and psychologists to provide counselling and treatment to the people depicting suicidal tendencies.

Consultation
At a consultative meeting organized at the office of Tharparkar SSP in collaboration with the non-profit Umeed Ghar, the participants identified the underlying factors behind suicide incidents and proposed remedial measures.

Tharparkar SSP Zahid Parveen Jamro said that the police are investigation that causes of suicides which happened during recent weeks.

She added that the police even registered two FIRs last month in this regard. She informed that an anti-suicide cell has been established in her office, adding that the cell will monitor the police investigation of the suicide cases besides taking steps to prevent such incidents.

Sarfaraz Hingorjo, In Charge District Intelligence Bureau, in his presentation briefed that 121 people, including 54 males and 72 females, took their lives in 2021 and 129, including 58 males and 76 females, in 2022. Among the deceased, 208 were Hindus and 48 Muslims. As many as 125 of the victims were aged between 21 years to 40
years and 101 between 15 years to 20 years.

According to him, 66 suicidal deaths have been reported so far since January and among them 36 were male and 30 females. A majority of them, 53, belonged to Hindu religion while the rest were Muslims.

Some 34 were in the middle age and 20 were teenagers. Hingorjo disclosed that among other stated reasons, a lack of adequate medical treatment of different illnesses and a dearth of recreational facilities were also seen to be
prompting the people to bring an end to their lives.

The presentation recommended employing the platforms of the social media, the mainstream media, awareness campaigns, counselling by the health practitioners and religious persons and teaching students about the consequences of suicide in schools.

The DIB's in charge also delineated over the hindrances to the police investigation which come from none other than the closes family members of the deceased in various forms.

The meeting decided to launch a 15-day awareness campaign. Chairman of Umeedgarh Kashif Bajeer, Dr Manoj Millani, DHO Tharparkar Dr Harchand Rai, Psychiatrist Dr Bhrit Kumar and others also shared their views and
recommendations.