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68-year-old farmer commits suicide after suffering losses during Kerala floods
Relatives said he spent hours in the house to remove accumulated slush and mud but was found hanging a day later.
The rains have stopped and floodwaters are receding, but flood-battered Kerala is facing another threat - suicides. Having lost everything in the deluge, at least three people have committed suicide in the last three days.
A 68-year-old farmer committed suicide in Varapuzha in Ernakulam district on Wednesday.
The man, identified as K Rocky, was in a relief camp for three days and returned to his house on Tuesday after floodwaters receded. His relatives said he spent hours in the house to remove accumulated slush and mud and advised them to go back to the camp saying he will make it livable by the next day.
But when he did not turn up at the camp for breakfast the next day, his relatives rushed to the damaged house and found him hanging from the ceiling.
The man’s relatives said Rocky had been worried over the huge losses he had suffered during the floods.
A 19-year-old student ended his life on Sunday in Karanthur in Kozhikkode district after his class 12 certificates were destroyed in flood waters. Police said he had got admission at a nearby Industrial Training Institute.
Another such death was reported from Thrissur three days ago.
The government has sent out counsellors and psychologists to help those who lost their belongings in the floods and were forced to shift to relief camps.
