How many of you have had the feeling that you just want to kill yourself? Quite a few of you , ain’t it? It is really strange how normal things can trigger such extreme reactions in our minds.
Some hard facts about suicides in India:
1. Age group 15-24 yrs constitutes 16% of the population(Census of India 2001) & most suicides in India take place between 15-29 yrs age group according to a survey conducted for 2001-2003.
2. Suicide may soon become the leading cause of death in India, currently 2nd in number to Transportation accidents in men and maternal disorders in women. 3. According to Wikipedia out of half a million suicides happening in a year in the world, 20% take place from India, making it the suicide capital of the world.
The facts are just so upsetting. There is so much pressure both external and internal, that people, young and immature, are driven to take such drastic measures. Yes, competition has increased and we are just horses running behind that invisible dangling carrot, striding ahead and in the process trampling on our own dreams and wishes and aspirations blinded by society into believing that, only in this carrot lies our salvation. Often people lose track of why their running and what their running for, finally losing their purpose to live. So they end it. A cold blooded murder of themselves is what supposedly is going to set them free from their misery. Oh! what a terrible waste, if only people saw beyond that carrot.
[This post is inspired by It’s Kind of a Funny Story, a movie about a 16 year-old American boy who upset by his life, decides to commit suicide but is stopped by a vision of his parents. He checks into a hospital, asking to be treated, is put into a adult psychiatric ward where he meets others with similar problems. Slowly he realises there are more reasons to live and the others in the ward are suffering from much serious issues in their life. A funny, touching and inspiring tale.]
References: Summary- Report on Causes of Death (2001-03) in India (Page no. 4)
Selected socio-economic statistics, India,2011, Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, GOI (Page no. 46)
Demographic Indicators, Census 2001 (Page no. 3)