Suicides by Daily Labourers has Risen 3 Times in 7 Yrs: Home Ministry

New Delhi: Between 2014 and 2021, the number of suicides committed by daily wagers or menial labourers increased by almost three times. This was stated by the Union Home Ministry as part of the reply to a question put up by Congress MP Mohammad Javad on the number of suicides by daily-wage workers.

The ministry informed that 15,735 daily labourers had ended their lives in 2014. But this number bloated to 42004 in 2021.

So, on average 43 daily wagers were committing suicide every day in 2014. In 2021 the daily suicide number for daily wagers has gone up to 115.

As per the data of the Home Ministry, five states of the country witnessed a sharp increase in suicides of daily workers in 2014-2021. These states are Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, and Gujarat. The sharp rise in suicides among daily wagers is suspected to have increased due to precarious economic condition because of COVID-19 pandemic.