The uncounted & the uncared for

ACROSS INDIA, MENTAL SUFFERING IS OFTEN WRONGLY PERCEIVED AS A PERSONAL FAILING, A SPIRITUAL DEFICIENCY OR A CHARACTER WEAKNESS, RATHER THAN A MEDICAL CONDITION

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As the world gears up to observe Human Rights Day on 10 December, commemorating the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the moment demands more than just a ceremonial nod to freedom and dignity.

It compels us to confront the stark human rights crisis festering within the very heart of our society, a crisis often hidden in plain sight: the profound neglect and suffering of persons with mental illness in India. We count our dogs, meticulously track the numbers of our tigers and elephants for conservation and policy, yet there remains no reliable, national enumeration of the thousands of mentally challenged individuals abandoned, destitute and left to wander the streets and byways of our cities and villages. This glaring absence on our census sheets is a chilling testament to the systemic devaluation and dehumanisation of a segment of the population whose basic rights like the right to health, dignity and life itself are routinely violated.