The National Human Rights Commission organised a day-long National Conference on Mental Health and Human Rights in New Delhi on the 30th May, 2014. During the discussions, one of the key suggestions, among others, included that given the Commission’s success, it needed to expand its scope of monitoring the Mental Health Care Institutions in the country. Some of the other important suggestions and recommendations included the need to:
a) address the issue of shortage of paramedical staff and Psychiatrists;
b) set-up and strengthen Psychiatry Department in all Medical Colleges;
c) utilize allocated funds by the Mental Health Care Institutions;
d) organize media campaigns for awareness on mental health issues;
e) work towards financial independence of Mental Health Care Institutions; and
f) provide support to NGOs for their increased role in the Mental Health Care.
It was strongly felt that due to monitoring by the NHRC, there had been some discernible improvements, especially, in the Mental Health Care Institutions, but a lot was needed to be done to improve the overall scenario in the area of mental health care, including special budgetary support and increased emphasis on mental health care education. The suggestions will be sent to the Government for implementation.
Earlier, inaugurating the Conference, Justice Shri K.G. Balakrishnan, Chairperson, NHRC said that the Commission was deeply concerned with the rights of mentally ill persons. He said that good mental health hospitals were not there in all States in the country. Their region-based presence is inadequate keeping in view the number of persons getting affected with one or the other psychiatric or mental disorder. Recalling the progress made in terms of the legislation for the Care and Protection of Mentally Ill Persons, since the British time, Justice Balakrishnan hoped that the 2013 Bill on Mental Health Care, pending in Parliament, might address several concerns. He also referred to the financial crisis being faced by the Mental Health Institutions and related challenges which were needed to be addr-essed on priority basis to strengthen them.
Shri Lov Verma, Union Health and Family Welfare Secretary said that the timing of the Conference was very contextual and appropriate in the light of the fact that a Bill seeking amendments in the Mental Health Legislation was before Parliament which hopefully would turn into a Law in a year's time. However, he said that the issues relating to mental healthcare were not the preserves of Government only but all the stakeholders were equal partners in addressing them. Shri Verma also said that 88 Psychiatry Wings in Government Hospitals were being upgraded.
Shri J.S. Kochher, Joint Secretary, NHRC said that the Commission was concerned with the prevailing situation in the Mental Health Care Institutions which included, among other things, providing clean environment, sanitation and drinking water facilities to the inmates. He said that wandering mentally ill persons on the streets and their care and rehabi-litation was another area of serious concern and the police personnel nee-ded to be sensitized with regard to their role in dealing with them as per the existing provisions of the Mental Health Act.
NHRC Members, Justice Shri Cyriac Joseph and Shri S.C. Sinha, NHRC's Special Rapporteurs, senior officers, representatives of Centre and State Governments, Heads of Mental Health Care Institutions, including, Director, NIMHANS, Bengaluru, civil society representatives participated in the deliberations.