Health officials step in as fear of ghosts grips village

Raiganj: In response to a wave of panic caused by fear of ghosts among residents, health officials organised an awareness camp on Saturday at Chawk Sibanandapur in the Kaliyaganj Police Station areas of North Dinajpur district. Malay Adak, District Deputy Chief Medical Officer of Health, Mursalin Rahman, Block Medical Officer of Health of Kaliyaganj, and Dr Kanika Das, a psychologist, led the health team to the village.

It has been reported that three individuals in the village committed suicide in the last two months, while another four have attempted suicide, narrowly escaping death. These incidents have left the villagers in a state of panic, with many believing that a malevolent spirit is haunting the village. Consequently, they have ceased venturing outside their homes after sunset, enveloping the village in an eerie silence as evening descends. Bapi Barman, a resident of Chawk Sibanandapur, expressed: “Three individuals in our village have died by hanging in the last two months and four others attempted suicide. The specter haunts us after dark, compelling us to avoid venturing outside at night. Our children are also terrified.”

Sunoti Barman, another villager, shared: “We are gripped by fear, convinced that a malevolent spirit is causing these suicides. Therefore, we are considering organising a grand ‘yajna’ in the village to rid ourselves of this spirit.”

Malay Adak, Deputy CMOH of North Dinajpur, commented:“This is nothing but superstition, but we empathise with the villagers’ plight. We had doctors and a psychologist present at the awareness camp. We advised them to stay mentally strong and assured them of regular support from our health staff to dispel such thoughts.”