Suicides by agri labourers up 18%; Kerala, Karnataka show maximum increase

Kerala, Karnataka, MP show maximum increase in 2020

A total of 10,677 persons engaged in the agriculture sector committed suicide in 2020, up 3.85 per cent from 2019. Of this, 5,579 were farmers — those whose profession was farming either on their own land or land taken on lease. This number was 6.69 per cent lower than in 2019.

However, also included in the agriculture sector were agriculture labourers, 5,098 of whom committed suicide in 2020, almost 18 per cent more than in 2019.

Among major agricultural states that reported the data, almost all major states except Madhya Pradesh and Tamil Nadu saw a dip in farmer suicides in 2020 compared to 2019. But, in suicides by agriculture labourers, all big states except Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh reported an increase.

Farm labourer suicides in Kerala, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh showed the maximum increase in 2020 as compared to 2019.