IMPHAL: A 13-year-old boy, displaced by the ethnic violence in Manipur, allegedly died by suicide early on Sunday morning at the relief camp at Jiribam Higher Secondary School, where he had been staying with his family.
The deceased, Yurembam Angamba from Jiribam district, was found hanging from one of the wooden beams of the cycle shed in the school.
The incident has renewed concerns over the plight of internally displaced persons (IDPs) living in relief camps across Manipur for more than two years. Official sources said that at least five IDPs, excluding the boy who died on Sunday, have died by suicide since the ethnic clashes broke out in in May 2023.
While police have taken the body to Jiribam district hospital, the post-mortem will be conducted at Silchar Medical College and Hospital in Assam. A case has been registered at Jiribam police station.
Sources also said that at least four minors in Manipur have allegedly died by suicide between July and September this year.
Previously, in July, a 13-year-old displaced boy was found dead at a boarding school facility. The Manipur Commission for Protection of Child Rights (MCPCR) had earlier urged the state govt to notify the state child policy without further delay, citing the rise in suicides among minors.