New Delhi: Among the sections of society most vulnerable to suicide, daily wage earners were the worst affected in the five years up to 2022, followed by housewives, self-employed and unemployed individuals, students and farmers. The figures for farmers, comprising both cultivators and labourers, were generally the lowest among these groups, an analysis of National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data over this period shows.
The number of daily wage earners reported to have died by suicide rose continually from 30,124 in 2018 to 32,559 in 2019, 37,657 in 2020, 41,997 in 2021 and 45,185 in 2022. On the other hand, the combined numbers for farm labourers and cultivators hovered between 10,000 and 11,000 in four of these five years.
The total number for farm cultivators and labourers was 10,349 in 2018, which accounted for 7.7 percent of the total 1,34,516 reported cases of suicide that year. This total figure also includes other groups such as salaried professionals.
The next year, the number declined marginally to 10,281, with farmers’ share in the total (1,39,123) also coming down to 7.4 percent.
The next three years saw marginal increases as the number went up to 10,677 cases in 2020, accounting for 7 percent of 1,53,052 cases.
In 2021, there were 10,881 reported cases among farmers, but the overall number increased by about 11,000 to 1,64,033, so the share of the total was 6.6 percent.
In 2022, 11,290 farmers were reported to have died by suicide, but the total again increased to 1,70,924, keeping the percentage at 6.6 percent.
Housewives
The total number of housewives reported to have died by suicide in each year between 2018 to 2022 was consistently more than twice the figure for farmers.
There were as many as 22,937 reported suicide cases among housewives in 2018, accounting for 17.1 percent of the total that year.
The numbers continued to be higher next year with 21,359 cases, accounting for 15.4 percent of the total.
The figure jumped by more than 1,000 cases the following year to 22,372 — 14.6 percent of the total.
In 2021, 23,178 housewives were reported to have ended their lives (14.1 percent), while 2022 saw the highest number in the past five years at 25,309 (14.8 percent).
Self-employed
After daily wage earners and housewives, self-employed individuals were the group worst affected by suicide in each of the five years of reference, with significant increases in each year.
In 2018, 13,149 such individuals were reported to have ended their lives, accounting for nearly 9.6 percent of the cases that year.
The trend persisted next year with a jump of nearly 3,000 to 16,098 reported suicide cases among self-employed individuals, accounting for 11.6 percent of the total.
In 2020 and 2021, the numbers were 17,332 and 20,231, accounting for 11.3 percent and 12.3 percent respectively.
However, there was a marginal decline in 2022, to 19,484 cases.
Unemployed & students
In each of the five years of reference, both students and unemployed people were affected more adversely than farm cultivators and laborers.
In 2018, there were 12,936 reported suicide cases among unemployed individuals, accounting for 9.6 percent of the total cases.
Similarly, the number was 10,159 for students, accounting for 7.6 percent of the total.
The trends continued for both the cohorts over the next four years, as the figure for unemployed people rose to 14,019 in 2019 (10.1 percent), 15,652 in 2020 (10.2 percent) , 13,714 in 2021 (8.4 percent) and 15,714 in 2022 (9.2 percent) .
The figure for students was 10,335 in 2019 (7.4 percent), rising to 12,526 in 2020 (8.2 percent) and 13,089 in 2021 (8 percent). It dipped marginally in 2022 to 13,044 (7.6 percent).
If you are feeling suicidal or depressed, please call a helpline number in your state.