16 lakh calls on mental health helpline in 2 years

The government has informed Parliament that its 53 mental health helpline Tele MANAS cells handled 16 lakh calls over two years helping people access care and services.

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Minister of State for Health Prataprao Jadhav said MANAS cells established under Union Government’s National Tele Mental Health Programme had been allocated Rs 120.71 crore under National Mental Health Programme and National Tele-Mental Health Programme for 2024-25.

The replies were given to Rajya Sabha MP Satnam Singh Sandhu, who raised the issue of mental health burden in the country.

Helpline can be accessed for 24/7

National helpline No. 14416 or 1-800-891-4416 under National Tele Mental Health Programme can be accessed for 24/7 tele-mental health services in 20 languages.

The programme was launched in 2022 and has received 15.95 lakh calls signalling the challenge in the segment.

In a written reply to Sandhu, the MoS said, “To strengthen mental health services at primary healthcare level, the Union Government has upgraded more than 1.73 lakh Sub Health Centres (SHCs) and Primary Health Centres (PHCs) to Ayushman Arogya Mandirs. Operational guidelines on mental, neurological and substance use disorders (MNS) at Ayushman Arogya Mandirs have been released under the ambit of Ayushman Bharat.”

Sharing details regarding the medical infrastructure for mental health services in the country, the health minister said, “There are 47 Union Government-run mental hospitals in the country while mental health services are also provided in all AIIMS. These services are also available under PM Jan Aarogya Yojna.”

In 2018, the government had established three more Central mental health institutes — National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, Bengaluru, Lokopriya Gopinath Bordoloi Regional Institute of Mental Health, Tezpur, Assam, and Central Institute of Psychiatry, Ranchi.