Rising number of techie suicides in Hyderabad

Naveen S Garewal
Tribune News Service
Hyderabad, November 20

Notwithstanding the claims of a massive financial boom in the IT industry, more people are reported to be unhappy with their work environment and insecurity of service. 

A woman software employee committed suicide late last night by hanging in her hostel room in Raidurgam are of the city. Allegedly she was depressed after being told that she would not be needed for work anymore.

The young victim, identified as 24-year-old girl Pogaku Harini was working for a software firm in Gachibowli area and staying in a women’s hostel for the last two years. The company informed her that her contract would not be extended beyond November 30, her last working day as per the contract. 

This is not an isolated example of people working in the IT industry taking extreme steps due to stress from work and unsure working conditions including fear of losing their jobs. Earlier in the day, another man sustained minor injuries after jumping off the two-storey building in the Marredpally area. He suffered multiple fracture injuries and has been shifted to local Gandhi Hospital for treatment. The police registered a case and are investigating, but according to preliminary investigations, he was suffering from work-related stress.

Similarly, last month a software engineer working at Infosys committed suicide by jumping from a multi-storey building near his office in Gachibowli. The investigating agency has narrowed down as the possible cause of suicide to be bi-polar disorder. Married with a six-year-old daughter the software engineer death has raised many questions about the stressful conditions related to work and insecurity of jobs.

Harini also worked as a junior software developer at an information technology company, in Gachibowli, the city’s IT hub. Police recorded the statement of her colleagues who said she is suspected to have ended her life late on Tuesday night after her employer told her that November 30 would be her last working day. A local Telugu girl, she hailed from Mahabubnagar district of Telangana.

Last week, barely an hour before tying the knot another software engineer N. S. Sandeep committed suicide at the marriage hall on the outskirts of Hyderabad. The incident occurred even as guests from the families of both the bridegroom and the bride were waiting for the ceremony to begin. “When the bridegroom, who was alone in a room for the make-up, did not come out, his relatives repeatedly knocked at the door. As there was no response, they broke open the door to find Sandeep hanging from a ceiling fan,” a family member told the police. Though the exact reason for the suicide is not known, work-related stress is suspected to the reason for the suicide. 

Another software engineer, 23-year-old Gundla Chaitanya working for a software company in Jubilee hills committed suicide on September 14 at his paying guest hostel. He left a note behind for his parents saying he was unhappy with his job. Similarly, in July Arvind (31), also a software engineer hailing from Srikakulam committed suicide after suffering huge losses in IT business in which he has invested around Rs 20 lakh.