Vitiligo Day Exclusive: Shattered marital relations due to 'whitening' of skin, social illiteracy over rituals

Ramesh and rashmi (name changed) got married in december 2011 with much fanfare, however, after a few days, Ramesh decided to separate from his wife. It was alleged that he saw marks on the wife's body and came to know that she was suffering from a skin disease called keloid and was undergoing treatment. Ramesh said that the in-laws hid this skin problem before marriage, and cheated on him.

After living separately for a few years, Ramesh filed for divorce in the nagpur Family court in august 2015. However, the court not only rejected the petition for divorce on the grounds of skin disease but also ordered that rashmi should be given 20 thousand rupees every month till he takes her back home.

This court case is the basis of this news. Many such cases have come to the fore in the country in which the marital relations of people have been broken due to skin diseases, especially vitiligo (white spots). Since such cases are not reported much, there are few written examples like the case of Ramesh and rashmi, but in reality, the problem of white spots in our society has always been causing problems in married life.

World Vitiligo Day is celebrated on 25 June, so that people can be made aware of this problem. Its purpose is also that vitiligo should be considered a skin problem and it should not give rise to mental disorders.

Doctors say the problem of congenital white spots remains a socio-mental burden for the patients. Statistics show that 25% of people develop the disease before the age of 10 years. gujarat and rajasthan have been reporting the highest number of cases of white disease in India. According to one data, about 2.5 percent of the country's population is suffering from this serious problem.

It is mentioned in one case that Stella Pavlides, who lives in New York, is a victim of the problem of white spots. She first noticed white spots on her hands and mouth when she was 22 years old and studying to become a court reporter. The doctors diagnosed it as vitiligo in the investigation. Now she is 40 years old. In her blog, she says- "Even though doctors say it is not fatal, but ask me I die every day because of it, this problem has killed my soul."

Doctors say it is quite common for people suffering from vitiligo to suffer from mental problems such as inferiority complex or social anxiety problems. Psychiatrists say, nowadays, even if there is a slight disturbance in their appearance, people are at increased risk of depression, in vitiligo it is a visible condition.

Today on World Vitiligo Day, we all should take a pledge that from now on whenever we meet any person suffering from Vitiligo, talk to him, smile, hug and give love. This behavior of yours may not cure the disease, but it will save the person affected by vitiligo from mental problems. Medical science also says that the severity of vitiligo can be reduced by keeping the stress level low.

People suffering from the problem of vitiligo need love, need self-esteem, why not start it right now? Why say what?