Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 19, 2026

A Procedure to Study Stress-Induced Relapse of Heroin Seeking after Punishment-Imposed Abstinence
Published on: March 23, 2022
(De-) criminalization of attempted suicide in India: A review
Rajeev Ranjan1, Saurabh Kumar1, Raman Deep Pattanayak1
1Department of Psychiatry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India.
Abstract:
Attempted suicide is a serious problem requiring mental health interventions, but it continues to be treated as a criminal offence under the section 309 of Indian Penal Code. The article reviews the international legal perspective across various regions of the world, discusses the unintended consequences of section 309 IPC and highlights the need for decriminalization of attempted suicide in India. The Mental Health Care Bill, 2013, still under consideration in the Rajya Sabha (upper house), has proposed that attempted suicide should not be criminally prosecuted. Decriminalization of suicidal attempt will serve to cut down the undue stigma and avoid punishment in the aftermath of incident, and lead to a more accurate collection of suicide-related statistics. From a policy perspective, it will further emphasize the urgent need to develop a framework to deliver mental health services to all those who attempt suicide.
Related Concept Videos
Psychosurgery
Historical Development of Psychosurgery
In the 1930s, Portuguese neurologist Antonio Egas Moniz introduced a surgical procedure designed...
Drug Regulation
Electroconvulsive Therapy
Deindividuation
Depression: Overview
Depressive Disorders: Etiology
Biological Factors in Depression
Biological predispositions significantly influence the risk of developing depressive disorders. Genetic studies highlight the role of variations in the serotonin transporter...

