The Centre on Tuesday told Parliament that on an average 115 daily wage workers and 63 housewives died by suicide every day in 2021.
Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai cited the data from the National Crime Records Bureau in response to a question by Congress MP Mohammad Jawed in the Lok Sabha.
A total of 1,64,033 suicides were reported in India in 2021, according to data from the National Crime Records Bureau. Of these 42,004 were daily wagers and 23,179 were housewives.
A total of 20,231 self-employed persons, 15,870 salaried persons, 13,714 unemployed and 13,089 students also died by suicide.
Jawed had also sought to know the steps taken by the Union government to prevent the rise in cases of suicides among daily wage workers in the country.
To this, Rai said that to provide social security benefits to the workers in the unorganised sector including workers in agriculture sector, the Government has enacted the Unorganized Workers’ Social Security Act, 2008.
“The Act stipulates formulation of suitable welfare schemes for unorganized workers on matters relating to: life and disability cover, health and maternity benefits, old age protection and any other benefit as may be determined by the Central Government,” the minister said.
He added that daily wage workers are provided with life and disability insurance cover under schemes like Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana and Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana.
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