Hyderabad: One day last May, for 30 year old MBA graduate A. Swarnalatha, everything seemed heart rending. She came to a park near Hussainsagar and quietly walked past the people there and got closer to the lake.
After reaching a deserted corner, without a second thought, she jumped into the water. For a moment everything went blank, but she started hearing some men shouting. The next thing she remembers is somebody pulling her out of the water and being shifted to hospital.
Swarnalatha now has a new life and a job. All she wants to tell people, who intend to end their lives, is that they must struggle and not give up. She now believes that suicide is not a solution and that life is precious.
Swarnalatha, Ramesh and Bhanupriya were among the 50 suicide survivors who came together at the Hussainsagar on Monday to spread awareness against suicides as part of the Jeevinchu Sadhinchu programme conducted by the police.
An MBA graduate from Osmania University Swarnalatha is one of the hundreds who were rescued by the Hyderabad lake police while they attempted suicide at Hussainsagar. Her parents’ opposition to her profession and their decision to get her married drove her to suicide.
She was working in financial firms before depression gripped her. “I had a job. However, at one point everything turned upside down. My parents were not happy about my job and they wanted me to get married. I am not blaming them.
They had their reasons. However, it reached a point where I could not take it anymore. And then all I was left with was suicide,” said Swarnalatha.
She now thinks that all problems can be tackled with a positive attitude. Two years ago 33-year-old G.V. Ramesh, an LIC agent from Malkajgiri broke caste rules.
Born in an upper caste family he fell in love with a 25-year-old woman from a lower caste and decided to marry her. Despite objection from his family he married Bhanupriya.
However, the harassment from his family compelled them to take a decision to end their lives together. On November 29 both jumped into Hussainsagar but were saved by the police.
The couple has now decided to fight odds together and not give up no matter how hard life becomes.
“We had no choice then. We were tortured by our families and all we thought about then was to end our lives,” said Ramesh, who is now searching for a new job.
“Due to harassment we faced severe problems. He lost his job. That’s when we decided to commit suicide,” said Bhanupriya.
After the police offered help they started believing in themselves. Malkajgiri police also intervened and helped the couple. “We are fine now. We have taken a decision to live no matter how hard it’s going to be in future,” said Ramesh.
