National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) 2023 Indian suicide data: Changing Trends and insights for suicide prevention

To the editor, The recently released (September, 2025) report of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) depicts the suicide rate in India to be 12.3 per 100,000 population for the year 2023.[1] This figure reveals a slight dip in the suicide rate in India, which was constantly increasing since 2018 (10.2 per 100,000 population) till 2022 (12.4 per 100,000 population).[2] In terms of absolute numbers, Maharashtra (n = 22,687), Tamil Nadu (n = 19,483), and Madhya Pradesh (n = 15,662) continue to be the top three states, contributing to approximately one-third of total suicides in India in 2023, which is similar to 2022.[1,2] In the year 2022, the top three states/ union territories with high suicide rates were Sikkim (43.1 per 100,000), Andaman and Nicobar Islands (42.8 per 100,000), and Puducherry (29.7 per 100,000), which changed to Andaman and Nicobar Islands (49.6 per 100,000), Sikkim (40.2 per 100,000), and Kerala (30.6 per 100,000) in 2023.[1,2] Bihar, Manipur, and Nagaland continued to be the states with the lowest suicide rates in the country.[1,2] Family problems and illness continued to be the major reasons of suicide in India, contributing to more than half of the suicides in the country, followed by drug abuse/addiction, and marriage-related issues.[1,2] Odisha emerged as a state, where more than 72% of the suicides are related to family problems, the highest in the country.[1] In the previous year, 49.6% of the suicides in Odisha, were attributed to family problems, which was 7th highest in the country.[2] Female suicides outnumbered male suicides among minors (<18 years), while the trend was reversed among adults.[1,2] There is an increasing trend of suicide among daily wage earners and students in 2023 in comparison to the previous year. In 2023, 8.1% of total suicides in the country were by students, in contrast to 7.6% in 2022.[1,2] Recent years have witnessed repeated postponement of competitive examinations, which might be contributing to the mental trauma experienced by students[3,4]; this may explain the increased suicidal behavior among Indian students. Compared to 2022, there is a marginal increase in suicide by hanging (60.9% vs 58.2%) in 2023 and a decline in suicide by poisoning (25% vs 25.4%) and drowning (4.1% vs 5%).[1] Suicide rates in the cities continue to be higher than the national average (16.2 vs 12.3), and cities in the southern part of India (such as Kollam and Vijayawada) report higher suicide rates.[1] Understanding the evolving trends and attributes of suicide helps policymakers, clinicians, and other stakeholders involved in suicide prevention calibrate their approaches. It also provides insights into the changing dynamics of suicide across different regions in the country. COVID-19 may have acted as a trigger for increased suicides after 2020, while control over the pandemic might be a reason for the slight decline in the suicide rate. However, the decrease is marginal and attributing it solely to pandemic control could be an oversimplification of factors influencing suicide trends. Monitoring these trends closely in the coming years may offer a better understanding of the factors driving suicides in India. Financial support and sponsorship Nil. Conflicts of interest There are no conflicts of interest.