Srinagar, Jun 29 :Body of a 17-year-old youth, who committed suicide by jumping into Jhelum in the summer capital, Srinagar, last week, was today fished out from the river.

Official sources said that panic gripped Noorbagh area in Srinagar when some locals saw body of a youth floating in river Jhelum early on Tuesday morning.
”The locals immediately informed the police,” they said, adding a team of River Police was rushed to the spot and the body was taken away.

The deceased was later identified as a Kupwara youth (name withheld) who committed suicide by jumping into the river on June 25 from Cement bridge in Srinagar.
”After completing all the legal and medical formalities, the body of the deceased was handed over to his relatives for last rites,” they said.

The youth, who was living in a rented accommodation in Srinagar, had shot a video before committing suicide. In the video, the youth could be heard seeking forgiveness from his parents for taking this extreme step. But, the authenticity of the video could not be verified.

”It was not immediately clear why he took this extreme step,” they said, adding police have registered a case and initiated investigation to ascertain the circumstances which forced him to commit suicide.

The number of suicide incidents in Kashmir valley has witnessed manifold increase since the onset of COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

Experts claim that the jump in the number of suicides is related to deterioration of mental health of people due to COVID-19 pandemic. ”There are various factors that affect the mental health of a person. During the current pandemic, people are stressed and have anxieties due to job loss, limited income, COVID related deaths and other factors. On top of this, due to restrictions, people were confined to their homes due to COVID curfew… all this has taken a heavy toll on the mental health of people,” they said.(UNI)