Poverty behind merit student's suicide bid

Jyoti Hattikatti, 17, a resident of Vadgaon suburb and a second PU student, consumed phenyl on Saturday, after her parents expressed their helplessness to fund her higher education. Thankfully, timely medical intervention at the district hospital saved her.

Jyoti secured 94 per cent in the second PU examination and with the high scores, she tried to convince her parents with renewed zeal. She even shortlisted some of the colleges where she could pursue engineering.

However, the family was financially too weak to support her. Her father, Nagappa Hattikatti, ran a tea stall at Bharat Nagar, which was the only source of income of the five-member family. Apart from the eldest daughter, Jyoti, Nagappa has another daughter and a son. The family lost the tea stall during road widening and now Nagappa is struggling to make a living with a makeshift tea stall.

That being the situation, Nagappa expressed his helplessness to pay the fees for an engineering seat. With engineering counselling scheduled to begin on July 1, Jyoti became impatient. Unable to compromise with her future, she attempted suicide.

Jyoti, who is now recuperating at the hospital, regrets her hasty decision. “I know it was a drastic step, but I could not bear the thought of not being able to pursue my dream of becoming an engineer,” she says.

A distraught Nagappa says there was no way he could have paid for her education, especially after losing the tea stall.

But the silver lining to this tragic incident is that a nationalised bank and some social activists have come forward to help the family. “With their help, I will now try my best to ensure that my daughter realises her dream,” he says.