'Work-related stress not main cause of suicides in forces'

Most suicides in the armed forces occur when soldiers and officers are on peace postings. Stress at work is a secondary cause, a recent research by the Army Headquarters has revealed. In 2006, 111 armed forces personnel have committed suicide.

Reducing suicides in the services has become a mission for Defence Minister AK Antony, whose first act after taking over was to order state administrations to be more sensitive to the problems of families of serving and former servicemen.

Top Army officers said most incidents occurred in peace stations, because of instability in families, difficulties in adjusting to civilian establishments, and other socio-economic pressures.

"In my opinion, there are tensions in families which get transmitted to them with the breakdown of the joint family system," Antony said earlier this month.

Out of 111 deaths, fratricide, or 'blue on blue' killings (soldiers killing fellow soldiers or their superiors) number 11. In these cases, the main cause was shortage of officers and failure of man management.

To check this, the Centre is considering a recommendation of the Army Headquarters that Zila Sainik Boards, which have a budget of Rs 30 crore, be brought under the direct supervision of the Central government.

The boards, run by states, are places where the lowest rung of soldiers and their families interact with the civilian establishment.