News
D.N.I.S. News Network Allaying fears of psychiatrists, Union Minister
of State for Social Justice & Empowerment Subbalakshmi
Jagadeesan assured that mental illness would not
be removed from the Disability Act, 1995, and that the Centre was keen on
support reaching the people suffering from this disability.
The Ministers assurance was in
response to apprehensions of the Indian Psychiatric Society that lobbying
was on in the Capital to see that mental illness was removed from the Disability
Act since it was taken care of by separate Acts. Inaugurating the Annual Conference
of Indian Psychiatric Society Tamil Nadu, Jagadeesan
added that the Centre would definitely not take any decision that would adversely
affect the welfare of the mentally ill.
About one crore people in the
country are affected by mental illness, though awareness in this regard is low.
Stating that financial assistance for schemes taken up by various states would
not be found wanting, the Minister recalled the larger awareness about mental
illness among people after the Erawadi fire tragedy
in Tamil Nadu, in which inmates of a private asylum were burnt to death in a
fire disaster.