If there is anything which holds the paramount significance in the world, it incontrovertibly is Human life. Everything else is subordinate to Human life and the whole world order ought to be crafted in such a way that nothing is positioned at the top of it. Man has been bestowed with a life which happens to be surrounded by a whole range of situations vis-a-vis ups, downs, happiness, sorrow, profit, loss, struggles, so on and so forth. During this “Not so smooth” journey of life, tests and trials will come one’s way perhaps more often than glad tidings and jolly moments. However, the tough situations should not weigh us down to the extent of giving up on everything including our lives. For a while now, Kashmir valley has been caught in the quagmire of rising cases of suicide, almost on daily basis. More unfortunately, few of them recorded videos thronging the internet before putting an end to their lives explaining their reasons to choose death over life. Reasons are obvious. Depression, anxiety, economic disaster, rising unemployment, bleak future and the likes. Smacked down by the inability to cope with the persistent torment, people are choosing to be six feet under by committing suicide. Such incidents are ringing the alarm bells of mental health issues among people. Most tragically, this damaging trend is catching pace with every incident of suicide which as a result is adding to the cyclopean toll of misfortunes engulfing the Kashmir valley. Given the nerve racking ordeal, if it continues this way, the unleashing of a major catastrophe seems inevitable. Before the situation takes the shape of an “irreversible, uncontrollable disaster”, a mass effort is required at all levels to save lives which are otherwise in jeopardy. This includes addressing mental health issues through counselling and mentoring, filling up the economic gap, and closing all the gaps dragooning people to commit suicide. We need to talk to each other and make each understand that choosing death over life is never a viable option. There exists no such thing in the world, which is beyond our control or which doesn’t have any solution. Suicide is not an end in itself. It is a gateway to an ocean of troubles. Choose life over death. Remember, the darkest hour is just before dawn.
Editorial: Choose Life Over Death
