Journalism of Courage
UAE tops list as 1,340 Indians die by suicide across Gulf in three years
In the last three years, over 1,900 deaths by suicides among Indians in foreign countries were reported. Of these, 1,340 took place in Gulf countries with most cases – 511 – coming from the UAE, according to data provided in Parliament
Around one crore Indian citizens and persons of Indian origin are presently living in the Gulf countries. (Credit: Pixabay)
Over the last three years, 1,340 Indian citizens died by suicide in Gulf countries, according to data provided by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in Parliament.
Out of these, 511 cases have been recorded in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), followed by Saudi Arabia (354), Kuwait (162), Oman (146), Bahrain (101) and Qatar (66).
The Ministry has pegged the total number of Indians abroad who have died by suicide between 2023 and 2025 at over 1,900. GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) countries recorded more than 70% of these cases, followed by Malaysia (131) and the United States (62). Italy, Canada and the United Kingdom recorded over 30 cases each in the three-year period.
Around one crore Indian citizens and persons of Indian origin are presently living in the Gulf countries.
The figures were provided by Minister of State, External Affairs, Kirti Vardhan Singh, in Lok Sabha during the ongoing Parliament session. He was responding to a question by Congress Parliamentarians Satpal Brahamchari and Jai Prakash on ‘review of death of Indian citizens abroad’.
On an average, number of suicide cases by Indian citizens living abroad seems to have increased in the period cited when compared to the last such figure provided by the government. In 2022, the MEA had pegged the number of suicides between 2014 and 2022 at 4,005.
Years: 2023-25; Source: MEA
Even as no reason has been cited behind the increase in such cases, the minister said that “several measures and steps such as Pravasi Bhartiya Bima Yojna (PBBY) have been taken by the Government of India to ensure the well-being and protection of Indian workers overseas”.
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“The PBBY is a mandatory insurance scheme for all Emigration Check Required (ECR) category workers going to ECR countries,” Singh said. The scheme provides an insurance cover of Rs 10 lakh in case of accidental death or permanent disability besides other benefits at a nominal insurance premium of Rs 275 for two years or Rs 375 for three years.
The latest data provided by the government also tabulates the deaths of Indian citizens by cause – natural causes, workplace accidents, suicide, crime and other reasons.
GCC countries accounted for considerably high fatalities due to workplace accidents with Saudi Arabia recording 182 cases and UAE 128 cases. Many Indians have lost their lives due to workplace accidents in Canada (40), Maldives (13), Singapore (32) and the US (46) as well.
Total number of Indians abroad who have lost their lives in the last three years exceeds 39,000.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
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