A government school teacher supervising Special Intensive Revision (SIR) work in Delhi attempted suicide on 8 July, his family alleges the administration ignored repeated medical leave requests and forced him to continue field duties despite serious health concerns.
Suicide Attempt From Rani Jhansi Flyover
Anand Kumar Saroha (45), a mathematics teacher at Sarvodaya Bal Vidyalaya, Lalita Block, Shastri Nagar, jumped from the Rani Jhansi Flyover on 8 July. He was first taken to Hindu Rao Hospital and later referred to St. Stephen’s Hospital, where medical staff say he is admitted and currently out of danger. Police at Bara Hindu Rao registered a Medico-Legal Case (MLC), after the hospital informed the station at 4:33 PM on 8 July.
Anand Kumar Saroha, son of Mahaveer Prasad and resident of A-340/4, Shastri Nagar, has been a teacher at the government-run Sarvodaya Bal Vidyalaya. At the time of the incident he was serving as a Supervisor overseeing Booth Level Officers (BLOs) involved in the SIR of electoral rolls for booths 141–150 in the Sadar Bazaar area. SIR is a concentrated exercise to update voters’ lists, and supervisors frequently undertake long hours of field verification and coordination.
The suicide note, accessed by Times Now, reportedly states that Anand had been facing excessive work pressure for the last three to four days, which was impacting his health. The note, now part of the police case file, expresses his distress over the mounting workload and his inability to cope with the physical strain.
Survivor Repeatedly Denied Medical Leave
Speaking to Times Now, family members said Anand had repeatedly applied for medical leave before the SIR duties intensified. According to Anand’s wife Anuradha, he was suffering from breathing problems for some time and found the daily, physically intensive tasks of SIR work taxing on his health.
The family alleges that instead of granting leave, officials ordered him to report for duty and warned that failure to do so would result in termination. “He sent multiple applications seeking medical leave, but the administration insisted he attend duty or face removal. He could not cope with the pressure and the physical strain. That is why he tried to end his life.”
Times Now sought a response from the Directorate of Education but had not received any reply at the time of filing this report. Further investigations are underway.
TIMES NOW | OPINION
A Teacher Nearly Died for the SIR. The System Must Answer for It: A teacher on a flyover’s edge is an indictment, not an accident. The state’s frantic SIR rollout treats educators as expendable field labour, deaf to their pleading medical applications. When a system threatens termination over a man gasping for breath, its priorities are electoral, not human. Mental health cannot be collateral to bureaucratic haste.
(If someone you know needs support, help is available. Tele-MANAS, the Government of India’s mental health helpline, can be reached at 14416 or 1-800-891-4416.)