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'Ex-gratia triggered more suicides'

Leading psychiatrists feel the phenomenon of 'mass hysteria', in which a person imitates others, and the offer of Rs 100,000 as ex-gratia to the family of those who end their lives may have accentuated the suicidal tendencies among the depressed cotton farmers who are committing suicide in various parts of Andhra Pradesh.

Says Dr M Jagannadham -- who is a member of the Royal Society of Psychiatrists and head, psychiatry department, Vijayawada Health University general hospital -- ''The suicides are akin to mass hysteria rather than each thing happening individually. In this phenomenon of mass hysteria, people tend to imitate others. People learn by seeing others.... A kind of fashion has caught up."

Two other leading psychiatrists, Dr Ramasubba Reddy and Dr Krishna Mohan, echoed similar views, saying the tendency to imitate might have contributed to the factors that led the farmers to end their lives.

The three experts also felt the offer of ex-gratia payment announced by the state government could be another contributing factor.

Dr Reddy explained a farmer might feel that he may not earn that much money even if he lived. ''And, therefore, by ending his life he can at least help his family to lead a better life.''

Describing such suicides as 'paradoxical', Dr Jagannadham said that in these cases the person ending his life feels the family should not suffer after his death.

Dr Reddy said another contributing factor might have been the 'ready accessibility' of the 'suicidal agent' -- the insecticide, with which the farmers were killing themselves. He felt that financial loss alone could not be the sole driving cause for the suicides.

Dr Jagannadham and Dr Krishna Mohan, however, felt that the financial condition might have caused depression and stress.

To prevent further suicides, the three experts suggested that teams consisting of psychiatrists, social workers and officials should be constituted for visiting the affected areas and offer counselling to the depressed farmers.

Added Dr Reddy, "The morale of the farmers should be boosted, not at the individual, but at the community level. Psychological confidence should be created and they should be told that the government will come to their help."

UNI

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