Kathmandu, Sep 10 (IANS) As many as 7,223 people committed suicide in Nepal in fiscal 2023-24, a latest data released by the Nepal Police revealed on Tuesday.
This staggering number, averaging 20 suicides every day, highlights an alarming mental health crisis affecting a broad range of people, including farmers, students, housewives, and unemployed youth, the country’s leading newspaper The Kathmandu Post reported.
Nepal, which was ranked seventh globally for suicide rates by the World Health Organization in 2014, has seen a troubling rise in deaths by self-harm in recent years.
The latest statistics reveal that over 40 per cent of the suicides were from farming backgrounds, with 5,556 farmers taking their own lives. Students made up 15.4 per cent of the total (2,128), while 11.6 per cent were housewives.
Despite this, the specific reasons behind these suicides remain unclear.
“The suicide rates among farmers, students, housewives, and unemployed youth are very high compared to other groups,” said Dr Ashish Dutta, a senior police official, told The Kathmandu Post.
He emphasised the need for a detailed study to identify the underlying causes.
The WHO, quoting a National Mental Health Survey in 2020, mentioned that nearly 80 per cent of people in Nepal need mental health care but do not get it. According to data obtained from the Nepal police, the average annual increase in suicides in the country between 2015 to 2020 was 7.2 per cent which increased to 14 per cent in 2021.
“Considering the severe absence of mental health services and resources for a large part of the population in Nepal, the WHO country office in Nepal in consultation with programme managers, mental health experts, and civil society organisations, developed a concept paper with two strategic recommendations,” the WHO stated.
“The first is a short-term one to operationalize a National Suicide Prevention Helpline Service to provide crisis support- followed by a long-term strategy to establish a National Resource Centre for suicide prevention in the National Mental Health Hospital to lead a multi-sectoral response,” it added.
As per the recommendations, the Ministry of Health and Planning (MoHP) agreed to establish the National Suicide Prevention Helpline Service at the Mental Hospital in Langankhel, Lalitpur, Nepal, the only government hospital in the country currently capable of treating patients with mental health issues.
In May 2021, a dedicated four-digit phone helpline number also became fully functional as WHO provided technical and financial support to run the suicide prevention hotline service round the clock and the Transcultural Psychosocial Organisation (TPO) Nepal provided operational support by recruiting and training counsellors and psychologists to answer the phones and counsel callers.
–IANS
int/psd/as
Disclaimer
The information contained in this website is for general information purposes only. The information is provided by TodayIndia.news and while we endeavour to keep the information up to date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the website for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk.
In no event will we be liable for any loss or damage including without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage, or any loss or damage whatsoever arising from loss of data or profits arising out of, or in connection with, the use of this website.
Through this website you are able to link to other websites which are not under the control of TodayIndia.news We have no control over the nature, content and availability of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.
Every effort is made to keep the website up and running smoothly. However, TodayIndia.news takes no responsibility for, and will not be liable for, the website being temporarily unavailable due to technical issues beyond our control.
For any legal details or query please visit original source link given with news or click on Go to Source.
Our translation service aims to offer the most accurate translation possible and we rarely experience any issues with news post. However, as the translation is carried out by third part tool there is a possibility for error to cause the occasional inaccuracy. We therefore require you to accept this disclaimer before confirming any translation news with us.
If you are not willing to accept this disclaimer then we recommend reading news post in its original language.
