Raipur (Chhattisgarh): Chhattisgarh, a Maoist-hit centre-eastern state of the country, has been witnessing one of the highest numbers of suicides among security forces serving the state coupled with incidents of fratricide. As many as 201 soldiers have committed suicide between 2007 and 2019 out of which 36 suicides were committed in 2019 alone followed by six suicides till June 2020 in the state.
A situation that seems to have worsened during the coronavirus pandemic.
Around 50 suicidal deaths of security personnel, including both police and paramilitary forces, have been reported from the Chhattisgarh over the past two years. The Maoist-hit Bastar division has recorded 18 of those suicidal deaths.
The state is also not far behind when it comes to fratricidal killings among security forces. As latest as May 2020, a Chhattisgarh Armed Forces (CAF) personnel shot two fellow jawans dead. In February this year, a CAF jawan died in a fratricidal attack. Similarly, last December, six Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel died and two others sustained injuries at their camp after a fellow jawan opened fire at them.
Experts believe that one of the things that push these jawans over the edge is depression, caused by a combination of factors including gruelling hours, hostile terrain, and being to always be alert and vigilant.
This is especially true in regions worst affected by Maoist violence — the seven districts of Bastar division including Kanker, Kondagaon, Jagdalpur, Dantewada, Sukma, Bijapur and Narayanpur.
"If they (security force personnel) come to know that they are not going to get leave from duty for a long time keeping them from meeting their family members, they tend to get depressed which often leads to them behaving aggressively. Most of the jawans have not been granted leaves amid coronavirus outbreak," Dr. Varnika Sharma, a Naxal expert and a social worker from Chhattisgarh told ETV Bharat.
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Stressing on the need to provide these distressed jawans access to counselling, Psychiatrist Dr. JC Ajwani said that the soldiers must be engaged in recreational activities.
"We should not see this as security personnel killing a fellow jawan. These actions are taken on a personal level. If a soldier shows symptoms of being mentally disturbed the authorities must make them seek psychological help. We can train them in such a way that they can easily deal with anything that is bothering them with much ease and comfort," said Ajwani.
Ajwani added, "The government must take care of their recreational needs. They must be provided with more entertainment to ease their stress. They will also benefit from meditation and yoga."
Recognising the severity of the situation, the Chhattisgarh government has directed the state’s director-general of police (DGP), DM Awasthi, to take special steps to relieve the mental stress of the police personnel including provision fro regular counselling, medical check-ups and easy leave procedures in a bid to lessen the incidents of suicides and fratricides.
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"We have taken certain measures to address the issue. Since we were all busy dealing with the coronavirus pandemic, we couldn't pay a lot of attention to these issues, but now we have decided to encourage them to practise Yoga, interact with psychiatrists, apart from other measures," said Tamradhwaj Sahu, state Home Minister.
Even if the government provides psychiatric help to the soldiers, there are high chances of the jawans not availing the services owing to the stigma attached to mental diseases. A 2014 study by Medical Journal Armed Forces India suggests that 96% of our soldiers are reluctant to discuss mental health problems.
