‘Establish NIMHANS-like institutions in all zones’
The Hindu
It’s shocking to note that India is the most depressed country: HC
MADURAI In order to address mental health issues, a Central health institution like NIMHANS must be established in each zone of the country, observed the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court. “It is shocking to note that India is the most depressed country in the world,” observed the court taking cognisance of a WHO report. A Division Bench of Justices N. Kirubakaran (since retired) and B. Pugalendhi observed that for a country like India with a population of 136 crore having 47 mental health hospitals was not enough. There was an acute shortage of psychiatrists and child psychiatrists. There was a need for every medical college to have a Department of Psychiatry, the judges said.Several principals of government and private schools in Delhi on Tuesday said the Directorate of Education (DoE) circular from a day earlier, directing schools to conduct classes in ‘hybrid’ mode, had caused confusion regarding day-to-day operations as they did not know how many students would return to school from Wednesday and how would teachers instruct in two modes — online and in person — at once. The DoE circular on Monday had also stated that the option to “exercise online mode of education, wherever available, shall vest with the students and their guardians”. Several schoolteachers also expressed confusion regarding the DoE order. A government schoolteacher said he was unsure of how to cope with the resumption of physical classes, given that the order directing government offices to ensure that 50% of the employees work from home is still in place. On Monday, the Commission for Air Quality Management in the National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas (CAQM) had, on the orders of the Supreme Court, directed schools in Delhi-NCR to shift classes to the hybrid mode, following which the DoE had issued the circular. The court had urged the Centre’s pollution watchdog to consider restarting physical classes due to many students missing out on the mid-day meals and lacking the necessary means to attend classes online. The CAQM had, on November 20, asked schools in Delhi-NCR to shift to the online mode of teaching.