Blackened Lives

By Muhammad Abbas Khaskheli | June 2020

Suicides have become a common practice in Sindh. In 2019, 99 people committed suicide in district Tharparkar alone. It is still unknown that why these people who commit suicide hate their existence so badly. Most incidents of suicide have been reported in district Tharparkar and its bordering districts where the majority of the population is Hindu or belongs to the scheduled castes. The second day of November was one tear-jerking day in Tharparkar’s history as 11 people committed suicide on that day. Two sisters-in-law, Veero Kolhi and Sodhi Kolhi committed suicide in Islamkot by hanging themselves from a tree while in village Sorey Ji Wandh of Taluka Mithi, a 20 year old married woman, Jeetu Bheel committed suicide by throwing herself in a well. In Kolhi Mohalla of Islamkot Town, 15 year old Marwaan Kolhi blew out her life’s lamp.

On October 13, 22 year old Sajan Bheel son of Chatoon Bheel committed suicide near Chhor in district Umerkot. A 26 year old married woman Rani, wife of Moolchand, committed suicide in Tando Muhammad Khan on October 19 as her husband refused to give her money to buy new cloths for Diwali. Digri city’s resident Chandu Kolhi committed suicide in Samaro Town. 15 year old Soniya Kolhi, daughter of Ramchand Kolhi committed suicide in Kotri’s Bihar Colony as there was no flour in the house for two days. 25 year old Musadiq committed suicide in village Sono Kolhi near Kot Ghulam Muhammad due to unemployment. 22 year old Vikram Meghwar killed himself in Mithi while his cousin Sonia Meghwar aged 14, committed suicide just two days after Vikram’s death. The most recent incident occurred in Umerkot where Kanu Kolhi, along with her husband Vishnu Kolhi, brought an end to their lives leaving behind 6 children.

Sindhi daily Kawish reported two news stories related to suicides in Sindh. In Kandyaro, a married woman Ansheela jumped into a river along with her two innocent children and committed suicide. In a second case, another woman Parrhi Kolhi committed suicide in village Bhandu near Nanagarparkar by hanging herself by the roof.

It is more deplorable that the local people of resource-rich Sindh commit suicides just for a piece of bread.

In most suicide cases, the victims were from the scheduled castes. Why do people in these castes commit suicide? There can be several reasons and the incidents mostly occur in Tharparkar where the suicide rate is very high. One of the main reasons is poverty. Other reasons are unemployment, premature marriages, troubled affairs, sexual exploitation of women, domestic violence, etc.

Sindh has been a prosper region for a long time as it has enormous natural resources, fertile lands, a beautiful coastline of 350 kilometers and a port city. That is the reason why greedy people from foreign lands have invaded again and again. It is more deplorable that the local people of resource-rich Sindh commit suicides just for a piece of bread.

Most of the suicide cases have been reported from Tharparkar, from where black gold (coal) has been excavated for generating electricity. Multinational companies have been found singing songs of prosperity in Thar but the real condition of the Tharis dwelling in Chaunras (typical Thari houses) tells another story. Coal has made lives of the Tharis completely black. Somewhere locals have to leave their centuries old ancestral villages while in other places, natural beauty is exploited. What is going on in Thar? Governmental and nongovernmental entities do not seem to be serious in answering the question.

Heavy rains were recorded in Thar last year but the locals were disappointed owing to unemployment and poverty which has increased to the extent that people have to commit suicides on a daily basis. Men and women die of suicides while children die of malnutrition. The government may term these deaths propaganda but empty stomached dead bodies of locals cannot be ignored.

Very few Tharis have been recruited in the Thar Coal Project while no corporate social responsibilities have been carried out yet by the companies excavating coal in Thar. This shows how greedily the multinational companies have been plundering the resources of Sindh without providing solace to the restless local souls. Overall, Sindh has been facing many issues, including dearth of employment opportunities, lack of merit, absence of industrial openings, restrictions in obtaining quality education and health facilities, etc. Such a situation provokes anger and frustration among the masses and, consequently, they have to either give up themselves or kill someone else.

Other major centers of suicides in Sindh are the districts adjacent to Tharparkar i.e. Badin, Sanghar and Tando Allahyar, which have numerous natural resources like oil and gas but the locals in these districts face similar issues. In his remarks on a petition related to such a case, the Chief Justice of Sindh once said that ‘Oil and Gas companies exploring and producing oil and gas in Sindh even recruit peshimams from other provinces instead of Sindh’.

The government intends to open a Langarkhana in Thar but it must remember that the Tharis need employment instead of charity. Social as well as political entities should raise their voice against the injustices of multinational companies which are busy in taking advantage of Sindh’s resources and, in return, doing nothing for the people of Sindh. A comprehensive research study needs to be conducted in Sindh to identify the causes of increasing suicides.

Feature/Tharparkar

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