Aug sees 38 suicides so far. Are rising Covid-19 cases to blame?

Nagpur: Is the coronavirus pandemic pushing people, particularly the young, into a mental health crisis? It can’t be mere coincidence that a rise in coronavirus cases has also seen a spike in suicides in Nagpur city this month.
From January 1 to July 31, the city police recorded 255 suicide cases (average 37 cases per month). But 38 people killed themselves between August 1 and 13. These 13 days have also seen a massive spurt in coronavirus cases. Interestingly, compared to previous year, the overall number of suicides has actually fallen compared with the previous year’s cases.
Though investigations are underway and the reason behind several suicides is yet to be ascertained, many have ended their life due to stress, unemployment and financial distress, evidence collected by the city police indicates.
Evidence indicates the Covid-19 pandemic has psychological and social effects. At least five saloon owners from city have died by suicide as the coronavirus outbreak snatched away their livelihood. Lockdown and restrictions in economic activities also left several people, particularly the working class and youths, with mental health issues.
This year, due to the coronavirus outbreak, the pass percentages of students in boards and universities examinations were more. So the numbers of dejected students endling life reduced drastically. But many minors killed themselves over trivial issues like a 10-year-old boy from Gittikhadan area over eating fast food, while another teenage boy doing so over mobile game.
Experts feel the Covid-19 pandemic may increase prevalence of psychiatric disorders and suicide rates during and after the pandemic. Social isolation, drop in social interaction, and the fear caused by the pandemic — all glaringly evident — are likely to increase suicides, said city psychologist and counsellor Anushka Karira. Another major factor is lack of anger management, she said.
According to the city police in calendar years 2018 and 2019, there were 680 and 635 cases of suicides respectively. Thus in 2019, each month saw and average of 53 suicides in 2018, the figure was 57 per month. Thus this year’s average of 37 cases per month is low. In April, the suicide cases witnessed a steep decline at just 11.
The figure started increasing in May which saw 28 suicides. In June, there were 49 cases while in July they rose to 66. This month in just 13 days, the city has seen 38 suicide cases. So while suicides were low during lockdown they have spurted during unlockdown along with rise in Covid-19 cases.
In most cases the deceased were “fighting helplessness, fear and uncertainty”, said a senior cop, who noted this had become a prevailing condition since the Covid-19 pandemic struck, bringing with it long lockdowns and economic misery.
Year---Suicides
2018---680
2019---636
2020 ( up to July 31)---255
2020
MONTHS---Suicides
Jan — 38
Feb — 30
Mar — 33
APR — 11
May — 28
Jun — 49
Jul — 66