Kota (RJ): Psychology experts and police on Sunday claimed mental health was a major reason behind suicides and urged people to not stigmatise those who seek therapy.
A number of experts and spiritual gurus gathered here in the city on World Suicide Prevention Day and shared their views on how best to wean off people from negative thoughts which lead them to commit self harm.
They shared their opinions at two separate events, organised by Allen Career Institute and Hope Society and Rotary Club Kota Roundtown at Satyarth auditorium in Jawahar Nagar and in a hotel on Bundi road, respectively.
Mental health is the root cause of most diseases but the view that there is something wrong with the person seeking help of a mental health expert must be discouraged, said Kota police range IG Prasan Kumar Khamsera at Satyarth auditorium.
Nimesh Desai, a former director of IHBAS, said that around two-thirds of the suicide cases in society were found to be associated with some psychological disorder.
The fundamental thing to understand is that one does not commit suicide, but becomes a victim of it, he said.
Spiritual Guru Sadhave Saraswati stressed that one does not commit suicide all of a sudden, but gives in to negative thoughts built up over a period of time. “Such an explosion of thought can be well handled with a spiritual lifestyle.”
Dr ML Agrawal, a psychologist and founder of Hope Society, noted that in the last few years, majority of suicides were witnessed among NEET aspirants and demanded the exam be conducted twice a year on the lines of JEE to ease some of the pressure.
Assistant Superintendent of Police Uma Sharma said mental health was not the sole reason behind suicide and cited issues like debt, sour relationship, and a sense of failure as some of the issues that lead people to kill themselves.
Kota, a hub of coaching institutes which caters to thousand of engineering and medicine aspirant, has gained a notoriety for witnessing an inordinate number of suicides among students.
The year 2023 saw the highest number of student suicides — 22 so far — with two ending their lives in a gap of a few hours on August 27. Last year, the figure was 15.
