Annual Report 2008-2009
Pune altogether had 74 posts in various grades which were found to be vacant. In the Government
Hospital for Mental Care, Visakhapatnam, none of the 54 appointed nurses (12 head nurses and
42 staff nurses) were trained in Psychiatry. The post of Occupational Therapist had not been
filled up since August 1995. In Gwalior Mansik Arogyashala, contrary to the directions of the
Supreme Court, there existed no continuity in the tenure of the Director. Other than this, curbs
continued to be imposed on the administrative, financial and other powers attached to the post
of Director.
In the Institute of Mental Health and Hospital, Agra, various posts required to be filled up had
been advertised and a good number of Class III and Class IV posts had been filled up on
contractual basis. Simultaneously, requisite steps had been taken for in-house training of nurses
and other para-medical staff.
(iii) Medical Records
Most of the Mental Health Hospitals were devoid of proper record rooms with computer facility
of storing and retrieving data concerning the personal and family history of mentally ill patients.
This was found to be true for the Institute of Mental Health at Kilpauk and the Mental Health
Hospital at SCB Medical College in Cuttack. The record room of the Arogyashala too needs to
be expanded or shifted to a more spacious room/place.
(iv)
Incarceration of Cured Mentally-Ill Patients
Non-acceptance of mentally cured persons by their immediate family members/relatives was
one of the major factors that resulted in their long confinement in the mental hospitals. The
primary reason cited by the family members/relatives for this kind of behaviour was the fear
factor related to ‘relapse’ of cured mentally ill patients. In Yerwada Regional Mental hospital,
there were 595 patients whose average duration of stay ranged between 5 and 30 years. The
predicament of cured patients posed to be a continuous problem in Government Hospital at
Visakhapatnam and Institute of Mental Health and Hospital in Agra.
6.19 The observations made by the Special Rapporteur during the course of visits made to
seven Mental Hospitals/Institutions were considered by the Commission and the same were
subsequently forwarded to the concerned State Governments for taking required necessary
action. The concerned State Governments were also requested to send in their action taken
report to the NHRC.
C.
Human Rights Awareness and Facilitating Assessment & Enforcement of
Human Rights Programme in Selected 28 Districts of India
6.20 The Commission has undertaken a programme of “Human Rights Awareness and
Facilitating Assessment of Enforcement of Human Rights Programme” across the country. For
this purpose, 28 districts, one from each State, have been selected from the list of identified
districts availing the ‘Backward Regions Grant Fund’ of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj,
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