The New Nation - Internet Edition

Md Jamal Uddin

The tendency to commit suicide among the students of the Dhaka University is increasing at an alarming rate mainly due to mental stress despite counselling by renowned psychologists.

The propensity to self-annihilation is particularly strong among female students.

A total of 10 students of different halls of the university-eight of them females- committed suicide during the last five years because of psychological pressure especially failure in love.

Sandhya Rani Sarker, a fourth year student of the Institute of Education and Research (IER) and resident of Begum Rokeya Hall, committed suicide on Tuesday by hanging herself from a ceiling fan inside her room .

Though the hall authorities are yet to find out any reason behind the incident, they assumed following talks with her roommates that Sandhya ended her life due to mental problem.

Some students of the university feel that the university authorities should dig out the reasons behind this sad aspect of suicide.

The university authorities said that the tendency to commit suicide among female students prevails despite adoption of motivational programmes.

It is a matter of great concern that this tendency even grips brilliant students of the university, said Vice-Chancellor Prof SMA Faiz.

He said the guardians of the students should be more careful about the activities of their offspring to avert such incident.

Failed love often prompts the female students to commit suicide, according to University sources.

Just take the case of Sabera Yeasmin Papry, a third-year student of Fine Arts Institute of Kuwait-Matree Hall, who ended her life in August last year. She left the world for good as her lover, a TV model, finally wrapped up all relations with her.

Zohra Khan Proggan, a second-year student of Law Department, courted the same fate for the same reason in June last year.

Humayun Kabir, a master degree student of Marketing Department of Surjasen Hall committed suicide in March 2005 as he was unable to bear the burden of family problems.

Overwhelming majority of these female students had chosen the path of self-destruction following rejection by their lovers, said a female teacher of the University preferring not to be identified.