Spate of suicides continues in city

A day after two teenagers hanged themselves, two more suicides were reported in the city — that of a software engineer and a senior citizen. With these, the number of suicides in Mumbai in the first week of January touched nine.

A day after two teenagers hanged themselves, two more suicides were reported in the city — that of a software engineer and a senior citizen. With these, the number of suicides in Mumbai in the first week of January touched nine.

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Sudhakar Naik, the 24-year-old software engineer, hanged himself from the ceiling fan in his 13th-floor apartment at Kanjurmarg and was found by his wife and neighbours on Wednesday evening. Based on statements recorded, the police said Naik was not depressed. The motive behind his suicide is not known.

In Mulund, Chanchal Gangar (67) set herself ablaze on Thursday morning. The woman, who was unmarried, lived with her nephew. Based on his statement that she was mentally unstable since childhood, the police have registered a case of accidental death.

Reacting to the sudden spate of suicides, especially among students, Chief Minister Ashok Chavan on Thursday said the state was setting up an experts’ panel to figure out the cause of such suicides. The panel will recommend ways to minimise stress, if it finds stress is making students to kill themselves.