<p>Supreme Court today asked senior advocate Harish Salve to assist it as an amicus curiae in passing a slew of guidelines to improve the conditions of mental hospitals across the country and making citizens aware about various facets of mental illness.<br /><br />"Mr. Salve can you assist us so that we can pass guidelines on this," a bench comprising justices M Y Eqbal and S A Bobde said. The senior advocate instantly agreed to it.<br />The bench then asked the counsel, appearing for National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), to provide all relevant documents to Salve.<br /><br />The bench has been hearing the PIL filed by NHRC seeking court's directions to improve conditions of mental hospitals across the country.<br /><br />Earlier, it had expressed displeasure over the response filed by West Bengal government on steps taken by it to improve the condition of mental hospitals in the state and in utilising the central grant.<br /><br />The court had also asked NHRC and Bangalore-based National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHNS) to come up with suggestions and a questionnaire for improving the conditions of mental hospitals and clinics in the country.<br /><br />Earlier, the court had sought responses from the Centre and all the state governments on the PIL.<br />The NHRC, in its plea, has sought direction to set up more mental health hospitals and make them more autonomous.<br /><br />"The mental health hospitals in the country are facing serious financial constraints as adequate resource allocation is not being made to meet their requirements. The Centre and state governments should accord priority in allocation of financial resources both for regular maintenance and upgradation of the physical infrastructure of these institutions," the NHRC had said.</p>.<p><br />The NHRC had said many of the mental hospitals were 100 to 150 years old and they do not receive the same priority as general health.<br /><br />It had said each state and Union Territory must have one mental health hospital fully equipped with latest equipment and sufficient medical and para-medical manpower and such hospitals be made autonomous.<br /><br />Lack of adequate administrative and financial powers of the Directors and the Superintendents of the Hospitals was "seriously affecting their functioning," it had said.<br /><br />"Therefore, these institutions should be made completely autonomous in managing their own affairs and the Managing Committee of these institutions should have adequate administrative and financial powers to manage their affairs efficiently," the NHRC had said.<br /><br />It had suggested that state governments be directed to sanction medical and para-medical manpower to these hospitals, without delay.</p>
<p>Supreme Court today asked senior advocate Harish Salve to assist it as an amicus curiae in passing a slew of guidelines to improve the conditions of mental hospitals across the country and making citizens aware about various facets of mental illness.<br /><br />"Mr. Salve can you assist us so that we can pass guidelines on this," a bench comprising justices M Y Eqbal and S A Bobde said. The senior advocate instantly agreed to it.<br />The bench then asked the counsel, appearing for National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), to provide all relevant documents to Salve.<br /><br />The bench has been hearing the PIL filed by NHRC seeking court's directions to improve conditions of mental hospitals across the country.<br /><br />Earlier, it had expressed displeasure over the response filed by West Bengal government on steps taken by it to improve the condition of mental hospitals in the state and in utilising the central grant.<br /><br />The court had also asked NHRC and Bangalore-based National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHNS) to come up with suggestions and a questionnaire for improving the conditions of mental hospitals and clinics in the country.<br /><br />Earlier, the court had sought responses from the Centre and all the state governments on the PIL.<br />The NHRC, in its plea, has sought direction to set up more mental health hospitals and make them more autonomous.<br /><br />"The mental health hospitals in the country are facing serious financial constraints as adequate resource allocation is not being made to meet their requirements. The Centre and state governments should accord priority in allocation of financial resources both for regular maintenance and upgradation of the physical infrastructure of these institutions," the NHRC had said.</p>.<p><br />The NHRC had said many of the mental hospitals were 100 to 150 years old and they do not receive the same priority as general health.<br /><br />It had said each state and Union Territory must have one mental health hospital fully equipped with latest equipment and sufficient medical and para-medical manpower and such hospitals be made autonomous.<br /><br />Lack of adequate administrative and financial powers of the Directors and the Superintendents of the Hospitals was "seriously affecting their functioning," it had said.<br /><br />"Therefore, these institutions should be made completely autonomous in managing their own affairs and the Managing Committee of these institutions should have adequate administrative and financial powers to manage their affairs efficiently," the NHRC had said.<br /><br />It had suggested that state governments be directed to sanction medical and para-medical manpower to these hospitals, without delay.</p>