Minister of State for Defence Rao Inderjit Singh on Friday revealed that the Indian armed forces reported 413 cases of suicides in the last three years.
In a written statement made in the Lok Sabha the minister informed that the army being the worst hit reported 334 cases alone followed by the air force and the navy with 67 and 12 cases each.
The minister also revealed that in the same period there were nine cases of fratricides or accidental killings within the force. The army in this regard too stands the worst hit recording eight such cases, with the air force reporting one such incident while the navy reported no such case.
The minister said, “The major reasons for such incidents include occupational hazards, family issues domestic problems, perceived grievances, personal issues, mental built, financial problems and inability to withstand stress.“
Citing the steps taken by the ministry to improve these figures Singh said, “The measures include improvement in living and working conditions through provision of better infrastructure and facilities; additional family accommodation; liberalised leave policy; establishing a grievance countering mechanism; provision of counselling; conduct of yoga, meditation as part of the unit routine etc.“
So far this year, 83 cases of suicides have been reported of which 69 were from the army, 12 were from the navy and one from the air force.