Badi (Khargone): While some locals in Badi claim that a large numbers of suicides in the village are a result of demonic interventions, others rubbish the theory saying that it is just sheer depression that has led to these suicides.
"People have been continuously trying to portray a negative image of our village saying that there are some supernatural elements due to which these suicides are taking place. This is absolutely rubbish. I accept that there has been a phase after 1990 when a large number of suicides had taken place in our village . But that cannot be attributed to supernatural powers," said Subhash Solanki, whose brother Vimal had committed suicide in 2012.
As number of suicides went up, villagers organized yagnas to supposedly ward off the evil. They claimed that after yagnas were performed, the suicides stopped . "The yagna loses its effect after two years and as such another suicide was recorded," said Gokul Panwar, whose brother Anand Ram committed suicide in 1995.
The psychiatrists, however, rubbish the villagers' theory of existence of evil spirits that are prompting people to commit suicides.
According to Indore-based psychiatrist Dr Srikanth Reddy, who is also a visiting psychiatrist in Khargone, over 95 per cent of the people who committed suicide in the area would have been in the phase of depression.
"Depression is one of the sole reasons for suicides. But in most of the cases, people usually fail to identify the symptoms. When they are not able to find any reason, they tend to associate it with some locally explainable chronicles like demonic interventions. The literacy rate in Khargone is also low which makes them think that way," said Dr Reddy.
"There is also a possibility that the residents might have some unaddressed psychiatrist problems. The administration should take immediate actions and appoint an official to look into the matter," he said.
Experts also believe that the suicides and depression are genetically related. If one person of a family commits suicide, there is a possibility that another person might also attempt the same.
"There can be many other sides to this problem. In a study which was conducted some years back in China, it was found that a large number of farmers in a particular area were committing suicides. After detailed investigation by the authorities, it was found that the insecticides that were used in farming in the area contained a chemical named organophosphate which increased depression levels among the individuals thereby leading to suicides. This or something similar can also be the case in Badi. It should be a part of the investigation," said Dr Reddy while talking to TOI.
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