Mann ki Baat

Subhashis Mittra

Death by suicide among jawans of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) is a matter of grave concern for the security establishment in the North Block. The reasons behind the suicides range from discrimination among sub-groups, to bullying at the workplace, fear of initiation of disciplinary or legal action, and lack of communication between the company commander and the personnel.

The ministry of home affairs (MHA) has been ensuring that many more personnel get time to spend with their families as an immediate solution to the problem. The mental and emotional wellbeing is of paramount concern for the MHA. According to the minister of state for home affairs, Nityanand Rai, as many as 730 cases of suicide by the jawans of these forces were reported in the last five years—144 suicides in CAPF, National Security Guards (NSGs), and Assam Rifles (AR) in 2020, 157 in 2021, 138 in 2022, 157 in 2023 and 134 in 2024. During the same period, 55,555 personnel quit or took voluntary retirement, unable to establish a work-life balance. The data cited by the minister in the Rajya Sabha reflected that 47,891 personnel in CAPF, NSG and AR have taken voluntary retirement and 7,664 have resigned in the last five years.

Psychological disorders often lead to suicidal and fratricidal tendencies among the personnel who suffer from mental stress for various reasons like staying away from family, tough posting and denial of leave. Giving details of the working conditions of the troops, Rai said, generally, the working hours in the CAPFs are eight hourly shifts. This, however, varies depending on operational exigencies. But necessary leave/ training reserve exists in the structure of battalions so that the personnel get adequate rest and leave in spite of vacancies in all CAPFs against their sanctioned strength, including in the AR.

The sanctioned strength for AR, another force under the MHA, is 65,536 personnel but at present it’s 62,575. The current