Bengaluru: The Union Government of India has selected the National Institute of Mental Health and Neuroscience (NIMHANS) as the nodal center for the National Tele-Mental Health Program in the Union Budget 2022. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced in the Union Budget on Tuesday that the technology will be supported.
This initiative provides much-needed mental health support to people of all ages who suffer from the Covid epidemic. The initiative involves a network of 23 centers of excellence and Nimhans is the nodal center for these. It is expected to help millions of people across the country adapt to physical, psychological and economic changes in the last two years of the epidemic
Mental health experts have praised the budget’s emphasis on mental health. Nimhans director Dr Pratima Murthy told to media that , “This program is a welcome move because of the lack of experts in mental health care and the treatment gap for various disorders such as psychosis, anxiety, depression and substance abuse.” He explained that this is a challenge as people in the country do not have the treatment to deal with mental health issues.