Alarming rise in suicide cases in Pakistani desert region

Alarming rise in suicide cases in Pakistani desert

There has been an alarming rise in suicide cases, especially among women, in Thar Desert, Sindh, the southern region of Pakistan. The authorities are linking the emerging health crisis to chronic mental illness in the impoverished district.

According to media reports, the Sindh Mental Health Authority (SMHA) has recorded 767 suicides in the southern province between 2016 to 2020. The Authority has said that 79 cases occurred in Tharparkar.

According to police data, at least 48 people have committed suicide in the district since January this year and 31 of them were women. Eight suicide cases were registered in the region between June 11-16 alone.

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The Chairman of SMHA, Dr. Karim Khawaja has said that this month the Authority has carried out what it called a “psychiatric autopsy” of the district to determine the reasons behind suicides, including why more women were committing suicide. He said that the results of the psychiatric autopsy will be available in the next few weeks.

“Psychiatric autopsy will reveal the real reasons for suicide cases and help in preventing suicides in Tharparkar,” he added.

The only psychiatrist of Tharparkar, Dr. Bharat Kumar has said that poverty may be a vital reason but the mother reason was psychiatric illness. He further stated that besides psychiatric illness and depression, other reasons are lack of family support or social support, or economic issues.

The head of the anti-suicide cell of the district police, Baadal Saand attributed a majority of the cases to mental illness and depression.

According to the United Nations Development Program’s Multidimensional Poverty Index for Pakistan reports, eighty seven percent of the population in the Thar Desert region lives in poverty.

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