Counselling essential to prevent suicides: Vellore SP
The Hindu
‘Hospitals must provide counselling to 20-30 persons every week’
Counselling programmes targeting vulnerable groups should be conducted to prevent suicides, said S. Rajesh Kannan, Vellore Superintendent of Police on Wednesday.
Mr. Kannan was speaking at a seminar on Suicide Prevention and Awareness, organised by the Department of Mental Health and Child Protection at the Naruvi Hospitals to mark World Suicide Prevention Day.
He said that 60-70 women, and 150-160 men, 11 boys and nine girls had committed suicide in Vellore in the last eight months. All women who had committed suicide were married. “Financial problems due to insufficient income and social media-related issues concerning youth in the 18-21 age group seem to be major reasons for suicides in the district,” Mr. Kannan said.
Stressing the need to identify reasons for suicides by women in families, the SP said suitable counselling should be given to prevent suicides. In this context, hospitals should provide psychiatric counselling to 20 to 30 persons every week, he said.
Presiding over the function, G.V. Sampath, Chairman, Naruvi Hospitals, said in India, 1.63 lakh persons attempted suicide last year (2021).
Family problems, debt, exam failure, love failure, extra marital affairs and criticism in social media are among the major reasons, he said.