New Delhi: A 28-year-old woman with an MPhil and PhD died by suicide on December 7 in Rajkot, citing the inability to find a job as the reason.
According to the Times of India, the woman – a native of Porbandar – was living on University Road in Rajkot. She had been living in a paying guest accommodation for the past three years, looking for jobs. A note that was found in her flat explicitly cited the woman’s inability to find a job as the reason for her to die by suicide, according to the police.
“Addressed to her parents, the woman wrote that despite studying so much, she has failed as she has not been able to secure neither a government job nor one in private sector,” a police official told TOI.
The woman’s suicide comes at a time when Gujarat apparently has the lowest unemployment. But the most recent data released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) said that the number of suicides citing unemployment has risen.
In June 2020, the Periodic Labour Force Survey said that Gujarat has the lowest unemployment ratio, at 3.4%. A state government press relase said at the time that measures taken by the government such as encouraging industries, transparent policies, labour reforms and simplifying the procedures for setting-up industries had resulted in the unemployment ration dropping from the previous year’s 4.5% to 3.4%.
However, the state also saw a 21% increase in reports of suicide due to ‘unemployment’ in 2018 when compared to the previous year. 2018 is the last year for which NCRB’s data is available.
The data said 318 persons had ended their lives citing ‘unemployment’ as the reason.
Gujarat also recorded 294 cases of suicide in 2018 where the person cited ‘distress due to poverty or economic situation’ as the reason. This was a rise of 162%, according to reports.
If you know someone – friend or family member – at risk of suicide, please reach out to them. The Suicide Prevention India Foundation maintains a list of telephone numbers (www.spif.in/seek-help/) they can call to speak in confidence. You could also refer them to the nearest hospital.