Chennai: “I am sorry. I am tired.” – wrote the 19-year-old NEET aspirant in her suicide note. Jyothi Sri Durga took her life today, a day before the examination. She is third such aspirant to have committed suicide. Students are afraid to write the entrance exam during pandemic which is to be held on Sunday.
Apart from the COVID-19 threat, students coming from flood-hit states such as Bihar, Gujarat and Assam, those from rain-hit districts in Kerala and those from Jammu and Kashmir where internet restrictions continue will have difficulty commuting to exam centres, as transport options are limited.
Jyothi had written the NEET exam last year but only managed to score 100 odd marks. She had been preparing for a year for the exam to be held on Sunday. She lived with her parents and brother in the armed forces reserve quarters in Madurai. Her father Murugasundaram serves in the fifth battalion of the armed forces.
According to her family, she had seemed fine while talking to them during dinner and had gone to sleep in the room she used to study in, for the exam. On Saturday morning, when they knocked on her door, however, she reportedly didn’t emerge, The News Minute reported.
They then called her on her cellphone and when she didn’t pick, they broke the door open. Jyothi was found dead in the room and had left behind a letter and video expressing her fear of the exam to her parents.
In the long letter addressed to her father, Jyothi has repeatedly stated that she fears being unable to meet their expectations and that she fears disappointing them. She repeatedly tells her parents to not blame themselves for her decision. In the video too, she apologises profusely to her parents for her decision.
Her parents have expressed deep shock over the decision.
Speaking to the media, her father said, “She studied well. She would have got over 550. But she has been depressed. She spoke to us well in the night. In the morning, we realised this has happened.”
The other two students who committed suicide over the same issue in the last month are also 19 year olds. The first such case was in August where a young woman named R Subashri took her life in Coimbatore district, a day after the Supreme Court dismissed pleas seeking postponement of the examination. This was followed by another death, last week of a young man from Ariyalur district. Vignesh had already attempted the test twice, but had performed well enough to get a seat, TNM told.
Telangana
State government’s suicide prevention (tollfree): 104
Roshni: 040 66202000, 6620200
SEVA: 09441778290, 040 27504682 (between 9 am and 7 pm)
24×7 Helpline: 9820466726
Andhra Pradesh
Life Suicide Prevention: 78930 78930
Roshni: 9166202000, 9127848584
Tamil Nadu
State health department’s suicide helpline: 104
Sneha Suicide Prevention Centre – 044-24640050
Karnataka
Sahai: 080 65000111, 080 65000222
Kerala
Maithri: 0484 2540530
Chaithram: 0484 2361161