India's lowest income bracket recorded 66% of all 2018 suicides
In India, the poorest seem more likely to take their own lives, government data has revealed. As many as 66% suicides recorded in India in the year 2018 were those who belonged to the Rs. 1 lakh or less annual income bracket. The data was published in the 2018 Accidental Deaths and Suicides in India (ADSI) report of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB).
Highest-earners recorded least number of total suicides
According to the data, 66% of the total 1,34,516 suicides in India in the year 2018 were people from Rs. 1 lakh or less income group. Within this income bracket, the number of suicides for men was twice as high as women: men (59,382), women (29,595), and transgender persons (9). In contrast, the richest—earning above Rs. 10 lakh annually—recorded 0.6% of all suicides.
Rs. 1-5 lakh income bracket comprised 29.1% of all suicides
At 29.1%, the income bracket with the second-highest suicides comprised people who earned an annual income of more than Rs. 1 lakh, but less than Rs. 5 lakh. The Rs. 5-10 lakh annual income bracket recorded 4.2% of all suicides.
Daily wage earners record highest suicides in profession-wise distribution
In terms of educational qualification, people who studied up to Class X recorded the highest number of suicides, while graduates of professional courses (such as MBA) recorded the lowest number of suicides. A profession-wise distribution showed that the highest suicide rates were recorded among daily wage earners (22.4%), followed by housewives (17.1%), with Central/Union Territory government servants recording to lowest suicides, at 0.2%.
Suicides rose 3.5% in 2018 from previous year
Overall, the number of suicides rose compared to the previous year form 1,29,887 in 2017, an increase of 3.5%. Economic status-wise, the highest number of suicides were recorded in the Rs. 1 lakh annual income or less bracket at 65.4%. Education qualification-wise, those who graduated matriculation were 23.6% of the total suicides, and daily wage earners recorded were 22.1% of the total suicides.
