PESHAWAR, Sept 21: Gulwareena ended her life by consuming pesticide tablets containing high quantity of phosphorus on the day of her wedding two months ago in Kot Manzari Baba village of Malakand district.

The 15-year-old took the step as the boy she was supposed to get married was not of her choice and her parents refused to review their decision about her engagement.

Similarly, Raqeeb Jan, 15, resident of Meena locality, too, took poisonous pills a year ago followed by his darling Palwasha, 14, a resident of Kot, as their parents didn’t allow them to marry.

The people blame the growing suicide trends on easy availability of cheap pesticide and insecticide tablets and drugs on the local market, lack of awareness, social taboos and lukewarm response of the local community.

According to locals, more than two dozen such incidents have occurred in the Kot Manzari Baba Union Council, a semi-tribal area, over the last six to eight years in which teenagers lost lives after consuming wheat pills (phosphorous laden tablets) over domestic issues, mostly related to crushes.

Some 15 cases alone in this current year from January to August have been reported to the Rural Health Centre (RHC) in which four teenage boys and girls of age group between 14 and 16 besides Zareen Kaka, 65, and Marjana Bibi, 45, have lost battle for life who had consumed the poisonous wheat pills, which are cheap and easily available at village shops.

Surprisingly enough, not a single incident has been reported due to social taboo and tribal traditions.

“I can surely count more than two dozen incidents of teenage suicides in Kot, Meena and Brah villages. The ratio is high among young boys and girls, in majority cases the teenagers have consumed tablets of phosphorus available at small village shops. People use these pills generally for keeping their stocks of wheat grain safe from dangerous pests and insects,” Manzoor Ali, a local resident said.

He said over the last four years there was a sharp increase in teenage suicides due to easy availability of the deadly tablets.

Kot Manzari Baba is a remote village of district Malakand comprising a population of 30,000 lying to the west of Dargai some 18 km upcountry with meager health, education and transport facilities.

The local residents mostly depend on daily wages and work in their fields. Despite being part of district Malakand, militants never struck there.

A Rural Health Centre (RHC) with only one Doctor instead of three sanctioned medical officers, two in place of four technicians with no lifesaving drugs and other necessary facilities is functional round the clock while a Basic Health Unit (BHU) is also offering first aid services in the area.

Dr Yasir Mahmood, in charge of RHC, Kot, said the consumption of phosphorous tablet was very common among teenage in the area.

“It has taken shape of a menace over the last few years. An application was moved some eight months ago to the District Health Officer, Malakand to devise a legal procedure for the sale of pesticides and insecticides,” he said.

The in charge of PHC said some elders were mobilised to educate youngsters and efforts were also made to ensure safe usage of the tablet in homes and that it did have a trickling effect but unfortunately, the suicide trend by using pesticides was still very alarming.

“I have dealt about 15 organic phosphorous poisonous patients mostly teenage from beginning of this year till now,” he said.

He said phosphorous was a rapidly soluble content and it took hours to cause death, so within half and hour, patients’ stomach could be washed but the problem was that the affected families preferred to get them treated at private places to prevent social stigma.

“Most patients are not brought to the hospital to avoid media exposure. Parents in case of teenagers fear if the cause of consumption of fatal tablet is revealed, it will bring stigma to their family,” Mr Mahmood said.

Zahid Jan, a teacher at a private school in Brah town, argued that teenage crush was not the only cause of the rising suicide rate in the area as extreme poverty, depression, lack of awareness, unabated availability of lethal weapons, drugs, unchecked access of youngsters to internet were also to blame.

He said parental care on children could address the menace.

Member of the Provincial Assembly (MPA) from Malakand and special adviser to Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Population Welfare Shakil Ahmad says, “It is a serious issue. DHO Malakand, civil society members, law-enforcement agencies and other stakeholders will be taken into confidence about steps to address it. Bringing revolutionary changes in health and education are on the top of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government’s agenda in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.”

Dr Mohammad Ali, district health officer Malakand district, when contacted said: “I have taken the charge three months ago. I don’t know about the application you referred to. The legal procedure for selling pesticides/insecticides and drugs is already there.”

“Action needs to be taken against illegal sellers of pesticides and suicide attempts with use ofdrugs/pesticides should be reported to police and the health departments. Every effort will be made to look into the matter and resolve it forthwith by including religious scholars, levies force, civic bodies and even teachers in the process,” he added.