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Govt to set up National Institute of Mental Health Rehabilitation with Rs 179.54 crore outlay - Joint Secretary, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment
Oct 11, 2019
NEW DELHI, 11 October 2019: Dr Prabodh Seth, Joint Secretary, Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India today said that the government has decided to set up a National Institute of Mental Health Rehabilitation (NIMHR) near Bhopal. The cost of the project would be Rs 179.54 crore in the first three years.
Speaking at the conference on 'Re-thinking Mental Health' organized by FICCI Aditya Birla CSR Centre for Excellence, Dr Seth highlighted that the objectives of the NIMHR include providing rehabilitation services to people with mental illness, capacity development in the area of mental health rehabilitation, policy-framing and advanced research in mental health rehabilitation.
"Given the huge gulf in demand and supply, we are thinking of developing in-service training programs for persons employed in government organizations who can get effective training and be effective in providing basic rehabilitation services," said Dr Seth.
Dr Nimesh Desai, Director, Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences (IHBAS), said, "Mental health is nowhere near the central agenda of the society. It is still a storm in a teacup. Scientific figures from the National Institute of Health put that rate at 49%."
The conference included panel discussions on subjects such as 'Taking Mental Health to the General Public', 'Addressing Stigma and Community Participation in Mental Healthcare', 'Telling Our Stories: Lived Experience and the Importance of Ethical Reporting', 'Access to Mental Health Support at the Workplace: Offline and Online Professional Support' and 'It's Alright Not To Feel okay: Young and Adolescents'.
Dr Achal Bhagat, Senior Consultant Psychiatrist and Psychotherapist, Apollo Hospitals, and Chairperson, Saarthak; Ms Amrita Tripathi, Founder, Health Collective; Mr Rajvi Mariwala, Director, Mariwala Health Initiative; Ms Pattie Gonsalves, Project Director, Sangath; Prof Aparna Khanna, Department of Development Communication and Extension, Lady Irwin College (University of Delhi); Dr Ambrish Dharmadhikari, Head, Medical Services (Psychiatrist), Mpower Foundation; Ms Deepa Singh Bais, PhD student and depression and anxiety survivor; Ms Tanmoy Goswami, Sanity Correspondent, The Correspondent, and depression survivor; Mr Anant Zanane, news journalist and depression survivor; Dr Kamna Chhibber, Head, Mental Health and Behavioral Sciences, Fortis Healthcare; Mr Anuj Dayal, ED, Corporate Communication, DMRC; Mr Balendu Sharma, Director, Localization and Accessibility, Microsoft India; Mr Shelendra Singh, HR, Nuvoco Vistas Corp Ltd; Mr Mohit Dhingra, alumnus, Young India Fellowship, Ashoka University; Mr Vanaj Moorthy, student, The Shri Ram School; Dr Amit Sen, Director, Senior Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist, Children First; Mr Parveen Shaikh, Psychologist and Head (Outreach and Collaborations), MPower; and Ms Urmila Chowdhury, ex-Vice Principal, The Shri Ram School also shared their perspective at the event.