The man was walking along the rail tracks at Lake Gardens when the cops managed to contact him on his cellphon... Read More

KOLKATA: In an instance of successful collaboration between a social network giant and Kolkata Police, a Picnic Garden resident was coaxed out of his decision to commit suicide in the middle of the night. Officers of the cyber cell of Kolkata Police, who jointly carried out the midnight operation along with Kasba police, said a detailed email from Facebook, which was sent after the man posted a live video from the top of a flyover, that helped them stop him from taking the drastic step.

“In 2016, Facebook had launched a programme in support with two NGOs to use artificial intelligence and try and locate anyone posting anything on their network that hints at possible suicide. Kolkata Police, too, had requested the Facebook authorities to help them out in preventing suicides. In this case, we received intimation around 10pm on Monday through an email from Facebook, which read that one user had uploaded a video wherein he stated that he was going to commit suicide. Based on the mail — and even a call — an inquiry was initiated by sub-inspector Raja Saha,” said an investigating officer.

The moment the cops were provided with the IP address by Facebook, they found out that a phone was used to post the video. The number was tracked and finally the man’s location was established at Picnic Garden.

Accordingly, the cyber cell contacted the duty officer at Kasba police station — SI Rana Adhikari — and he rushed to the address. A private company employee and married for several years, he was not at his residence when the cops reached his residence at 1pm. The duty officer found that the man was suffering from mental trauma due to some personal issues. His mother was asked to call her son.

“The moment the man received the call, police talked to him and after much persuasion, he was convinced not to take any drastic step. All this while, he was walking along the Lake Gardens rail tracks. He finally returned home around 3am. We have arranged for his counselling,” said an officer.

In 2016, Facebook India had announced a suicide prevention feature, similar to those launched earlier for users in the US and the UK. The feature helps users flag posts by their friends where they appear to be struggling or having suicidal thoughts. “Often, friends and family who are the observers in these types of situations don’t know what to do,” said a Facebook official.

In India, Facebook has partnered with two non-profit organisations. One of them is run by an established Bollywood actor who herself fought depression and now run the helplines where Facebook users will be referred to, if they are in need of assistance. A separate helpline is being run out of Tata Institute of Social Sciences to provide free psychological counselling.

“This is just the beginning and we are hoping that together we can save many more lives,” said a senior Kolkata Police officer.

