Cabinet clears Mental Health Care Bill | The Hindu.

[added on 15.09.2013- see draft of bill here http://mohfw.nic.in/index1.php?lang=1&level=1&sublinkid=1385&lid=1319]

Highlights from this news article:

..services should be affordable, of good quality and available without discrimination

Under the provisions of the Bill, government has an obligation to provide half way homes, community caring centres and other shelters for mentally ill people. This has been planned under the District Mental Health Programme in the 12th Plan.

In 2005, the National Commission on Macroeconomics and Health reported that 10-12 million or one to two per cent of the population suffered from severe mental disorders such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, and nearly 50 million or five per cent from common mental disorders such as depression and anxiety, yielding an overall estimate of 6.5 per cent of the population. The prevalence of mental disorders was higher among women, those who were homeless, poor and living in urban areas, Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad told The Hindu.

He said the Bill tries to address the needs of the families and caregivers, and the needs of the homeless mentally ill. It provides for setting up Central and State Mental Health Authorities, which would act as administrative bodies, while the Mental Health Review Commission would be a quasi-judicial body to oversee the functioning of mental health facilities and protect the rights of persons with mental illness in mental health facilities.

The new Bill, once approved by Parliament, will repeal the Mental Health Act, 1987.

added on 05.07.2013

Released at the United Nations: “A NEW GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP: ERADICATE POVERTY AND TRANSFORM ECONOMIES THROUGH SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT”. Report by the High-Level Panel on the Post-2015 Development Agenda. Link to the report: http://www.post2015hlp.org/featured/high-level-panel-releases-recommendations-for-worlds-next-development-agenda/

comment on it: ” Surprisingly, mental health does not feature in the report even though WHO says that more than 450 million people encounter this issue.”http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/on-disability-missing-the-bigger-picture/article4885638.ece