The Indian armed forces continue to lose around 100 personnel to suicides every year despite successive governments holding that several measures have been taken to reduce the stress among soldiers. As many as 125 military personnel took the extreme step to end their lives in 2016.

Replying to question in Lok Sabha on Friday, minister of state for defence Subhash Bhamre said 101 soldiers, 19 airmen and five sailors committed suicide last year, with another three cases of fratricide (to kill a fellow soldier or superior) being reported from the three Services.

This year, 13 Armyinfo-icon jawans have already committed suicide, while two such cases have been reported from the IAF. Soldiers posted in far-flung areas often undergo tremendous mental stress for not being able to take care of the problems being faced by their families back home, which could range from property disputes and harassment by anti-social elements to financial and marital problems, as was earlier reported by TOI.

Prolonged deployment in counter-insurgency operations in J&K and Northeastalso takes a toll on the physical endurance and mental healthinfo-icon of soldiers. All this is also compounded by poor salaries, lack of basic amenities, denial of leave and ineffectual officer leadership.