Suicides cost Rs 30,000 crore or 1.3% of Tamil Nadu GDP in 2021, says study by IIT-Madras

The cost due to suicide including attempts in the state in 2021 was around 30,000 crore, 1.3% of the state GDP, according to a study by IIT-Madras. Each of the deaths due to suicide was estimated to cost 1.29 crore.
The study by theRehabilitation Bioengineering Labsat IIT-M to estimate the socio-economic cost of suicide was handed over to Health ministerMa Subramanianon Wednesday. The study pushed for suicide prevention initiatives though state-wide registry, strengthening district mental health programmes, surveillance and Education besides policies and legislation. The cost includes premature loss of life, health Services, bereavement, psychological impact on survivors and lost productivity.

According to NCRB, there were 16,927 deaths due to suicide in TN in 2011, which came down to 13,493 in 2019. There was a steep rise in suicides to 16,883 in 2020. The next year, it rose to 18,925 in 2021 when India had recorded 1.64 lakh deaths due to suicide.