INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
AHMEDABAD: Komal Parmar (name changed), a 45-year-old residing in west Ahmedabad, was shocked to find insecticide powder in sugar container
and phenyl like liquid on the bathroom floor frequently
Close watch revealed that her 13-year-old daughter was behind it who had threatened to kill her
With such incidents continuing, she was forced to dial helpline seeking a solution."Our talks revealed the teenage girl wanted to harm the
parents.She wanted them to consume insecticides-laced sugar or skid on the slippery floor and sustain head injury
We got to know that the mother had snatched her phone a few days ago and had refused to give it back
Since then, the girl had got violent," said a counsellor withAbhayam 181 women helpline
"The parents told us that the girl was spending almost the whole night on the phone, chatting with online friends or spending time on social
media watching reels or posts
It had greatly hampered her studies and social life."The parents were aghast as they had not anticipated such a reaction
The counsellors said that they were more shocked as they had not left any stone unturned to provide for the girl who was a precious child
born after 13 years of their marriage.But its not a one-off case with the helpline, said Falguni Patel, coordinator for the Abhayam helpline
"Before 2020 or Covid pandemic, we would get barely 3-4 calls a day
In the past couple of years it has increased three-fold with about 12-15 such calls a day
It accounts for about 5,400 calls annually.More worrisome trend involves kids and teens - out of total calls, about 20% calls are related to
persons under 18 years," she said
"In overall volume of calls, it would barely make 1-1.5% till 2019 as we are not a psychological helpline per se
But in the past two years, such calls make up about 3% of the total volume which is significant."Experts said that the spike coincides with
the pandemic period when the teens got hold of a phone for their studies
Before the pandemic, the kids would often get phone calls from their parents and will not veer into social media or other sites fearing
Online games and social media are two major activities by teens, said counsellors.Dr Hansal Bhachech, a psychiatrist, said that the figures
"While harming others is an extreme reaction as withdrawal from the phone or social media
We often get cases where teens exhibit self-harm tendency when their phones are confiscated ," he said.
