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Resource centre on India's rural distress
 
 

One agricultural labourer died by suicide every two hours in 2021

-Down to Earth

29% increase in suicides by farm labourers from 2019 

The National Crime Record Bureau has released an alarming statistic. An agricultural labourer died by suicide every two hours and a total 1,64,033 people died of suicide in India in 2021.

The number amounts to 5,563 suicides by farm labourers, which is a 9 per cent increase from 2020 and a 29 per cent increase from 2019.

The highest numbers were recorded in Maharashtra (1,424), Karnataka (999) and Andhra Pradesh (584).

In any agricultural household, the three sources of income are cultivation, livestock and daily wage. The household income for a farmer from cultivation declined from 48 per cent in 2013 to 38 per cent in 2021.

Daily wage is the biggest contributor to household income. This is a fundamental change in the economy of these households. Apart from agricultural labourers, 5,318 farmers also committed suicide, taking the total number of people who died by suicide in the farming sector to 10,881 or 6.6% of total suicide victims.

As per the NCRB report, certain states and Union territories — West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, Tripura, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Chandigarh, Lakshadweep, and Puducherry — reported zero suicides by farmers/cultivators as well as agricultural labourers.

By 2023, India has promised to double its farmers’ incomes from 2015-16 levels. Considering the decline in income from cultivation, this is unlikely to happen. Moreover, the economy has seen a slump since 2016, beginning with demonetisation. Then a two-year COVID-19 pandemic put a halt to job opportunities for everyone.

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