As India’s accidental deaths rise, J&K records 17.2% decline

Shafat Malik
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08 May 2026

• UT among lowest despite tough terrain • Just 39 nature-linked deaths in 2024 • J&K rate 8.8, national 33.3

Srinagar, May 07: At a time when accidental deaths across India continued to rise, Jammu and Kashmir recorded a decline of 17.2 per cent in such fatalities during 2024, with the Union Territory also reporting one of the lowest accidental death rates in the country, according to the latest “Accidental Deaths & Suicides in India 2024” report released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB).

The NCRB data shows that J&K recorded 1,211 accidental deaths during 2024, while the accidental death rate stood at 8.8 per one lakh population against the national average of 33.3. Only Nagaland, Lakshadweep and Manipur reported lower accidental death rates than Jammu and Kashmir.

The decline in J&K comes against the broader national pattern. Across the country, accidental deaths increased from 4,44,104 in 2023 to 4,67,857 in 2024, a rise of 5.3 per cent. The national accidental death rate also increased from 31.9 to 33.3 per lakh population during the same period.

The NCRB figures place Jammu and Kashmir among the regions with the lowest accidental death burden despite geographical conditions that include mountain roads, snowbound stretches, landslide-prone areas and weather disruptions that affect connectivity for several months in parts of the Union Territory.

The report shows that accidental deaths linked to “forces of nature” remained low in J&K during 2024. Of the 1,211 accidental deaths recorded in the Union Territory, only 39 were categorised under forces of nature, which include lightning, floods, landslides, torrential rain, heatstroke and exposure to cold.

Nationally, however, deaths due to forces of nature increased sharply. The NCRB recorded 7,903 such deaths in 2024 compared to 6,444 in 2023, reflecting a rise of 22.6 per cent.

Among States, Odisha recorded the highest number of deaths linked to forces of nature at 1,494, followed by Madhya Pradesh with 1,085 deaths, Bihar with 1,028 and Uttar Pradesh with 801.

The NCRB data further shows that lightning accounted for the largest share of deaths caused by forces of nature nationally at 35.7 per cent, followed by heatstroke at 23.2 per cent and exposure to cold at 10.5 per cent. Deaths due to floods, landslides and forest fires also registered an increase during 2024 over the previous year.

Of the total accidental deaths recorded in J&K, 1,172 were classified under “other causes”, a category that includes traffic accidents, drowning, electrocution, poisoning, falls and sudden deaths.

Across India, traffic accidents continued to account for the largest share of accidental deaths. According to the NCRB, traffic accidents contributed 42.6 per cent of all accidental fatalities during 2024. The country recorded 4,95,256 traffic accidents during the year, resulting in 1,99,443 deaths and injuries to more than 4.5 lakh people.

Road accidents alone accounted for 1,75,142 deaths nationally. Overspeeding remained the single biggest factor, linked to more than 61 per cent of road accident fatalities. Dangerous or careless driving and overtaking accounted for another 26 per cent of road accidents.

The NCRB report also points to the concentration of accidental deaths among the working-age population. Persons in the 30-45 age group accounted for 31.3 per cent of all accidental deaths in the country during 2024, followed by those in the 45-60 age group at 23.7 per cent. Male victims constituted 82.4 per cent of total accidental deaths nationally.

The report states that Maharashtra recorded the highest number of accidental deaths in the country at 75,807, accounting for 16.2 per cent of the national total. Madhya Pradesh recorded 45,695 accidental deaths, while Uttar Pradesh reported 42,987.

In terms of accidental death rates, Puducherry recorded the highest figure at 71.3 per lakh population, followed by Chandigarh at 66.9, Ladakh at 63.9, Haryana at 59.6 and Maharashtra at 59.4.