Tarun Karthick
Campbell Bay, 12 July 2022
Andaman and Nicobar Islands recorded the highest rate of suicides in the entire country in 2018, 2019 & 2020. The rate of suicide in Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the year 2018 was 41.0, in the year 2019 it was 45.5 and in the year 2020, it was 45.0.
Rate of Suicides i.e the number of suicides per one lakh of the population is widely accepted as a standard yardstick for comparison.
The all India Rate of Suicides was 11.3 during the year 2020.
180 people committed suicide in Andaman and Nicobar Islands in 2020. The figures are concerning as Andaman & Nicobar Islands has constantly held the number one rank in the rate of suicides for three consecutive years. National Crime Records Bureau is yet to release the Accidental Death & Suicides in India, 2021 report.
According to the data, the cause which contributed the highest to the suicides during 2020 in Andaman and Nicobar Islands is Illness, followed by Family Problems. The third highest contributor to suicides is Drug Abuse/Alcohol Addiction.
A total of 180 suicides were recorded in Andaman and Nicobar Islands in 2020. 130 Male and 50 Females was the gender-wise division among the individuals who committed suicide.
The data suggests that the society in Andaman and Nicobar Islands is undergoing a serious problem which needs to be dealt with utmost urgency.
All suicides are preventable if signs are identified and help is provided on time. Mass awareness campaigns must be launched against suicide in Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
The top causes of suicide should be addressed with utmost urgency. Advanced and accessible medical care should be the focus of the Administration as 47 people have committed suicide in Andaman and Nicobar Islands in 2020 due to illness. Councillors specialising in dealing with family problems should be posted in each PHC so that those undergoing family problems should be able to seek help. Family problems are the 2nd largest cause of suicide in Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Drug Abuse/Alcohol Addiction is the third largest cause of suicide in Andaman and Nicobar Islands and needs immediate attention of the authorities. The authorities need to keep tabs on the import and sale of drugs in the Islands. De-addiction Centres for Drugs and Alcohol should be opened in the remotest areas of the Islands so that everyone should be able to ask for help. Banning the sale of alcohol is not a solution to the problem, but the illicit sale of IMFL and Country Made Liquor should be stopped.
A dedicated suicide prevention helpline should be launched in the Islands with trained councillors to provide 24X7 support to those in need.
It’s high time that we take steps in the right direction to bring down and eventually achieve zero cases of suicide in Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
(The data used in this News Report has been obtained from the National Crime Records Bureau’s report titled Accidental Deaths and Suicides in India 2020.)