LAND OF MASS LAKADSUNGHWA HYSTERIA
A fear psychosis has gripped Uttar Pradesh after nearly 150 cases of braidcutting were reported in the last two months from Kanpur, Bareilly, Agra, Aligarh, Meerut, Jhansi and Badaun. On August 3, a 60-year-old woman was allegedly lynched in Agra on suspicion of chopping hair.
CHOTI-KATWA
Under this latest phobia, women are finding their hair cut off after falling unconscious at night. Scared women have changed their hair style and started tying them into a bun. Not many dare to sleep outdoors, some are wearing helmets or simply staying awake all night.
In the mid-Eighties, there were rumors of a man out to kidnap kids after making them smell his wooden stick that made them unconscious. Over three dozen children allegedly disappeared during the phase that lasted almost two months. Police could not arrest anyone.
ROTI-PYAZ WALI BUDHIYA
In the late-Ninties, people in slum areas insisted that an old woman was visiting homes, asking for roti-pyaz (chappati and onion) and those who gave it to her, later found all their money missing
MUHNOCHWA
In 2002, 30 districts in the state were gripped by the fear of ‘Muhnochwa’ or face scratcher. Villagers claimed that a light-emitting flying object came towards them in the dead of the night and scratched their face.