Three forty-eight defence personnel in India committed suicide since 2014, Indian media reported the country’s Defence Minister Subhash Bhamre as saying.
Army tops the list of suicides, with the number at 276. Sixty suicides were reported in the Indian Air Force while the figure stood at 12 for Navy, the minister told the parliament.
He also said that eight cases of fratricide were reported during the period.
Bhamre informed the lawmakers that the country has taken various steps to address the issue, such as improving living and working conditions for the personnel. The government has also mandated psychological counselling sessions conducted by officers for armed forces personnel and their families.
In the past month or so, various videos of soldiers complaining of dismal working conditions have surfaced. The personnel have complained about long hours, poor conditions, inadequate time off, and unequal pay.
The soldiers belong to different forces of the Central Armed Police Forces—Border Security Force, Central Reserve Police Force, Central Industrial Security Force, Indo-Tibetan Border Police, and Sashastra Seema Bal, the five security forces under India’s Ministry of Home Affairs
