Spate of suicides give Delhi Metro a bad name

New Delhi In a city in which stress runs high, Delhi Metro tracks seem to have become the lodestone for those looking to end their lives in the anonymity of the thousands of footfalls passing through busy stations.

On March 6, a 22-year-old jumped on to the track before a running train at the Mayur Vihar Phase 1 Metro station in east Delhi. On March 2, a 24-year-old man committed suicide by jumping on to the tracks at the Chandni Chowk station.

There were two similar incidents in February and two in January. While three of the individuals were rescued in time, a 21-year-old woman who had jumped off the platform at the Preet Vihar Metro station in east Delhi after an argument with her boyfriend on Valentine's Day wasn't so lucky.

‘In an instant'

Psychiatrists say the trend is not just unfortunate but unavoidable.

"Most of the time, a person takes the extreme step of committing suicide in an instant. And in a place that is easily accessible like a train track," Dr Puneet Dwivedi, a psychiatrist, said.

According to police, about five suicide attempts take place at metro stations every year. The last few months have seen a rise in the numbers, with seven cases being reported since December. "Apart from increasing vigil and deputing more security guards, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation can install platform screen doors [PSD]. That can at least be a step to ensure safety of commuters," suggested additional deputy commissioner of police (crime and railways) B.S. Gurjar.

PSDs are automatic glass doors installed at the platform to keep passengers away from the track. All six Metro stations of the high-speed 23-kilometre Airport Metro have PSDs.

2012 timeline

January 24: Young man jumps before a train at the Chandni Chowk Metro station. Driver deploys emergency brake, averting casualty.

January 27: Woman suffers injuries after jumping from the Kanhaiya Nagar Metro station.

February 14: Young woman commits suicide by jumping off the platform at Preet Vihar Metro station in east Delhi.

February 19: Man critically injured after falling on the tracks at Sultanpur Metro station.

March 2: Young man killed after jumping on to tracks at Chandni Chowk Metro station.

March 6: Youth dies after jumping before a train at Mayur Vihar Phase 1 Metro station.

— IANS