News
Lankans 71 years and above are the most suicidal: Police
View(s):Suicides in Sri Lanka are highest among persons of the age of 71 and above, according to data compiled by Police for the past three years.
In the age category of 71 and above, 357 people committed suicide in 2013, 324 in 2014 and 307 in 2015, according to data tabled in Parliament by Minister of Law and Order Sagala Ratnayaka.
Overall, suicides in Sri Lanka remain high among all age categories between the ages of 17-71, with a total of 3,058 suicides recorded in 2015. In 2013, 3,455 persons committed suicide and 3,144 in 2014, the data showed.
More disturbingly, there have been a significant number of suicides recorded among very young persons in the age group of 8-16, with 84 committing suicide in 2013, 94 in 2014 and 66 in 2015.
Males outnumber females in suicides by nearly threefold in all three years. In 2013, 2,703 men committed suicide as against 752 females. In 2014, 2,484 males and 660 females and in 2015 it was 2,389 males and 669 females.
The highest number of suicides in 2015 was recorded from the Kandy Police Division, while in the two previous years, the largest numbers were recorded from the Ratnapura Police Division.
Minister Ratnayaka disclosed these details to Parliament in response to a question raised by JVP MP Bimal Ratnayaka.