A father of two who had incurred huge losses in his catering business during the pandemic and was forced to sell lottery tickets to sustain his family hanged himself in Bansdroni on the southern fringes of Kolkata early on Friday.
Police said Satyabrata Mahapatra, 45, was under pressure to repay the loans he took after his business failed and his family members, including his wife and 22-year-old son, were forced to take up part-time jobs to help him run the family.
His wife is a caregiver and his son works as a delivery boy for an online food delivery company.
Mahapatra, a resident of HL Sarkar Road in Bansdroni, was found hanging from a branch of a jackfruit tree not far from his home around 4.45am.
“His wife and son were the first to spot him hanging from the tree. They brought him down and rushed him to Baghajatin State General Hospital. But it was too late,” said an officer of Bansdroni police station.
An officer said he had learned from the family that Mahapatra had a good business before the pandemic but he failed to get a single order for one entire year, when there were stringent restrictions on social gatherings.
“He had started taking loans from various sources to sustain his family. His daughter is a school student. His wife and son too chipped in and started working but apparently did not earn enough to smoothly repay the loans,” the officer said.
In the past year, a number of people killed themselves, unable to bear the financial losses and the changes brought to their lives.
Many have lost jobs since the pandemic struck and are struggling to adjust with their new jobs, which fall far short of their expectations.
In December 2020, a 46-year-old executive who was finding it difficult to repay loans following a pay cut during the pandemic committed suicide in his flat on the Rashbehari connector.
Last month, a 53-year-old man who had lost his permanent job at a consultancy firm committed suicide in his rented apartment in Patuli. He left behind his wife and son.
In October, a 51-year-old ended his life in Golf Green after his business floundered during the pandemic and he was unable to repay an educational loan he had taken for his daughter.
In June, a 38-year-old man who was left unemployed during the pandemic and was forced to take the job of supplying polythene bags to shops had committed suicide in Behala.
In July, a 71-year-old widow who was the lone earning member in the family after her son lost all means of income during pandemic, committed suicide at her Haridevpur home.