There is an increase in suicide in the Thar desert of Sindh province in Pakistan. The suicidal rate is increasing alarmingly. According to the Sindh Mental Health Authority, the number of suicide was 767 from 2016 to 2020 in the Southern province, while it was 79 in the Tharparkar district and sixty four in the Umerkot district. But women are committing suicide more in the Thar desert, a neglected region in the country. According to available sources, there were forty eight suicides since January this year, while the number of women was thirty one. But the actual number is rendered to be higher. Indeed, a large number of suicide cases go unreported mainly because families or relatives of the deceased prefer not to come to the police or report the suicidal incident.
No doubt, there is a range of economic, social and other reasons behind the rising suicide in the desert region. Poverty and psychological illness including depression are major reasons for increased suicide in the desert. Poverty is high in the region. According to available sources, around eighty seven percent of the desert population lives in poverty. Notably, many reasons are responsible for poverty in the desert, which has more than one and a half crore people, including a lack of financial and other resources and climate change, which led to the change in the pattern of rainfall on which local people depend for livelihoods. Droughts caused by climate change affect the agriculture and livestock of local people. Poverty leads to depression and motivates to commit suicide, which had intensified in the region since 2012 when 24 people took their lives.
Besides, there are some other reasons for the rising cases of suicide committed through hanging from trees, taking poison or pesticide or jumping into wells in the desert region. Family issues such as domestic violence and a lack of family support are to be especially noted here. Moreover, the displacement of families, a lack of social support and the abuse of drugs significantly cause suicide in the Thar desert, which is a mineral-rich region but mostly ignored by mainstream media and government. Sexual harassment through social media, which has recently become a cause of social concern in the region, is believed to be another significant cause of rising suicide especially in the Tharparkar and Umerkot districts of Pakistan.
Of course, law enforcement agencies made some efforts to punish those who are involved with social media based sexual harassment, which causes suicide among women, girls and youngsters. Moreover, law enforcement agencies undertook some actions against making and selling homemade liquor and abuse of drugs. But there are limited efforts to address other causes of committing suicide and prevent suicide in the noted desert area of Pakistan. According to available sources, there is a limited number of mental health counselors in the entire desert region. Moreover, there is a lack of poverty reduction efforts in the desert and people do not have access to financial and other resources. Even if mega projects are being carried out in the region, there is no trickle-down effect of such projects.
Thus, effective efforts are needed to prevent suicide in the Thar desert. In this respect, the causes of suicide need to be well-addressed. Of course, increased access to financial resources is very important. Funding from the federal and provincial governments is needed to reduce poverty and improve the economy, which currently cannot support the emerging lifestyles and aspirations of the growing population. Moreover, the introduction of modern means of agriculture can help to get rid of poverty or improve the existing economic conditions especially driven by droughts, which the desert area faces for a third consecutive year. Counseling services need to be augmented in the area. Domestic violence also needs to be reduced with effective programmatic efforts.
Of course, some other measures are also important. Increased connectivity of the region, which is vastly isolated from the rest of the country, with main cities is important. In this regard, an increased media focus is needed, along with increased access to the internet and television. But local efforts, together with government and non-government initiatives, are imperative to improve the economic situation, address other causes of rising suicide and reduce the chance of suicide in the Thar desert.
