ASI posted in Latehar commits suicide at Old Baradwari

Jamshedpur : A 50-year-old wireless operator committed suicide by consuming poison substance at his residence in Old Baradwari under Sakchi police station past mid-night. Ram Krishna Pathak, who was an assistant sub inspsector (ASI) of police posted at Latehar district.

Pathak, who was suffering from depression, has left a suicide note in which he has said that he has lost interest in life. One of the relatives said that Pathak was was not happy ever since he was transferred to Latehar district, a naxal-infested area two years back. The body was sent to MGM Medical College and Hospital for autopsy.

�Depression is the major concern of the society. It is not only medically harmful but it also leads people to commit suicide. While studying we have found that people who are depressed have higher tendency to commit suicide. So there is an urgent need to understand the problem and address it,� said Dr. U K Srivastava, city based doctor.

He said that cases are caused by exposure of youths to uninhibited violence on television. The inability to perform well in examinations also forced students to end life. Like failure, illness is also a major cause of suicide.

�Trends are changing in our city though the numbers have reduced this year. Suicide, which about two decades ago was supposed to be the domain of the elderly, youths and women have taken the lead in this pursuit of death,� said Srivastava.

Notably the city has a very high rate of suicidal deaths that is 9.5 persons per lakh of population per year, which is more than the rate at metro like Kolkata( 1.52) and Mumbai ( 6.6).