Pension delayed, senior citizen kills self

A senior citizen allegedly committed suicide by jumping into a well at Aarey Colony on Monday after his pension application approval had been delayed .

The police said the deceased, identified as Shankar Karade, 60, left a suicide note stating that he was taking the drastic step because he was upset after he did not get his pension on time.

The Aarey Milk Colony police said Karade worked as a doorkeeper at a store in the locality and had retired on July 31. He lived with his wife, Mangal, and two daughters at a government quarter in Unit 3 of Aarey Colony. His eldest daughter is married.

The police said Karade applied for pension immediately after his retirement. He recently submitted his documents to the Pay and Account department however there were some objections on his form stating that a background check of Karade needed to be conducted, a routine procedure. The procedure was getting delayed because of the same.

Senior inspector said at around 11 am on Monday, Karade left home and told his wife, Mangal that he was going to the pension office to check on the update about his pension. Karade did not return and till 8 pm as Karade did not carry a mobile phone, his wife was unable to contact him. She went to the pension office to look for him, but he was not there. She approached the Aarey police and filed a missing person's complaint.

When the police enquired with Mangal, she told them that Karade had been depressed due to the delay in his pension and was also addicted to alcohol.

"We asked his wife if Karade had given her a letter or any document and after we scanned his cupboard, we found a suicide note in which Karade had stated that he was upset because he was not getting his pension in time. He has also mentioned names of two clerks at the pension office who were handling his file. However, he has not alleged any harassment," said More. The police said that at around 9.30 am on Tuesday, Karade's body was found in a well in a forest area close to Panchavati Hotel in Unit Five of Aarey Colony, following which it was sent to Bhagwati Hospital for a postmortem.

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