----- Original Message ----From: ABDUL MABOOD
To: javed_abidi@ncpedp.org
Sent: Wednesday, March 31, 2010 5:56 PM
Subject: Fwd: MHA reform: my sharings and contributions
Javed Sahib, This is the first reaction from Bhargavi sent to all after getting the minites of
MOH. After that many reactions have come up.
---------- Forwarded message ---------From: V Bhargavi <bvdavar@gmail.com>
Date: 25 February 2010 11:57
Subject: MHA reform: my sharings and contributions
To: "akilamaheshwari@yahoo.com. \"soniadeuri .\"" <soniadeuri@sify.com>,
skdeuri@sify.com, "Dr.Thara\" <thara@scarfindia.org>, mahima nayar
<mahimanayar@gmail.com>, Rajeshwari <iyerrajeshwari@ymail.com>, \"Randhir
Wokhlu (rwokhlu)\" <rwokhlu@cisco.com>, Anil Vartak <avartak@yahoo.com>,
Ravindranath <ravindranath05@gmail.com>, Gurudatt <kundapurkar@yahoo.com>,
mukul <societyashadeep@yahoo.com>, kromatiks ratna <kromatiks@vsnl.com>, Ishita
Sanyal <ishitasanyal@hotmail.com>, paripurnata <ppurnata@vsnl.net>, be mallari
kulkarni <mvkulk55@spinalinjury.net>, Shivaswamy <annusiva@yahoo.co.in>,
anagasthya@gmail.com, rajni milne <rajnimilne@rediffmail.com>, JKTrivedi
<jitendra.trivedi@gmail.com>, Ajit Bhide <mukunjit@yahoo.com>, sukumaran PP
<sukupp@gmail.com>, Jatinder Khurma <j.khurma@yahoo.co.in>, rita seth
<sethrita@gmail.com>, anupma gupta <gupta_anupma@yahoo.co.in>,"
<kannaad@hotmail.com>, nami india <namiindia@yahoogroups.com>, drsinha/vardaan
<drharshitsinha@yahoo.com>, akbmail@gmail.com, venugopal.sridhar@gmail.com
Cc: Amita Dhanda <amitadhanda@gmail.com>, Aparna <aparnasathe73@gmail.com>,
Anubha Sood <anubha.sood@gmail.com>, ABDUL MABOOD
<abdul1965@gmail.com>, SUNDARI RAVINDRAN <ravindrans@usa.net>, ratnabali
ray <anjali_i@dataone.in>, Michael Szporluk <mszporluk@disabilityrightsfund.org>,
Paul Deany <pdeany@disabilityrightsfund.org>, "Naidu@Basicneedsindia. Org"
<naidu@basicneedsindia.org>, Vasudha Nagaraj <vasudhanagaraj13@gmail.com>,
rajiveraturi@gmail.com, Tasneem <traja@sdtatatrust.com>, Mahesh Chandrasekar
<advocacy.cbrforum@gmail.com>, Ravindra Bakre <ravi_bakre2003@yahoo.co.in>,
Alok Sarin <aloksarin@gmail.com>, Lavanya Seshasayee
<lavanya.seshasayee@gmail.com>, suzie titus <suzie_titus@yahoo.co.in>, Sachin Apte
<sachinfreedom@gmail.com>, Bapu Trust Mumbai <baputrust.mumbai@gmail.com>,
Renu Addlakha <renu@cwds.ac.in>, Sumeet Jain <jainsumeet@yahoo.com>, Vandana
Gopikumar <vandana.gopikumar@thebanyan.org>, Vaishnavi Jayakumar
<vjayakumar@yahoo.com>, Arun Rao <deafway@hotmail.com>, honey vahali
<honey_vahali@rediffmail.com>, anup dhar <dhar.anup@gmail.com>, Anupriya Das
<anupriya@manavfoundation.org.in>, SCARF COMPUTER CELL
<scarfcomputer@gmail.com>, Prasanna Pincha <Prasanna.Pincha@actionaid.org>, Bapu
Trust Pune <camhpune@gmail.com>, teju@cscs.res.in, veena shatrugna
<veena52@yahoo.com>, Lakshmi Rameshwar Rao <buchamma@gmail.com>, "Col. Dr.
D.S. Goel" <coldsgoel@hotmail.com>, Vikram Patel <vikram.patel@lshtm.ac.uk>, "dr.
achalbhagat" <achalbhagat@yahoo.co.in>, monica kumar
<monicakumar_manas@yahoo.com>, Deepika Nair <nairdeepika1@gmail.com>,
jsagde@yahoo.com, Benedetto Saraceno <saracenob@who.in>
Dear All,
[This is a motley group of people not a moderated group list.]
On January 22nd, the Ministry of Health organised a meeting on revision of the Mental
Health Act. Some of you were a part of the group. Hope you had a happy and fruitful
meeting. As part of the Disability rights initiatives, I attended several cross disability
meetings, along with some others among you. I Can share outcomes if there is interest.
Some others among you were part of neither, and hope you can join up preferably in all
such meetings coming up in the near future.
I read the minutes of 22nd and I found many curiosities. I thought I would share them
with the by now large mental health community just to share my feelings on these events.
If I have left some addresses out, this is only an oversight. I have not kept anybody out on
purpose!! Please send my email to your friends and others who may be interested. Just, I
request, please keep email harmonious. This is very important for me and for all others.
Dr. Soumitra Pathare as co-ordinator.... This is first question. I googled his name and
found 2-3 pages, mostly about his 2 year old course [WHO supported]; and his popular
WHO book [co-authored] on policies and legislations. I googled PUBMED for his
research accomplishments. I found only two articles, one in which he is the 4th author;
the other, a commentary on ECT of about 2-3 pages in an Indian journal. I found no
reference whatsoever to any of his writings, contributions to campaigns, actions he may
have taken etc. either on the CRPD or on any other human rights subjects in mental
health. In all the 20-40 odd consultations or workshops that I have attended around the
country, he has not been manifest. Rather private figure, from all that I gather, with very
little public presence or mainstream contributions. He was also supported to work [guess
WHO supported?] in countries, which I found difficult to locate on the map and I can
neither spell nor pronounce. These are all probably my limiations; I am open to be
corrected.
“Virtual Pune” a site giving commercial news about Pune, introduces Dr. Soumitra
Pathare as “psychiatrist Ruby Hall Pune, mental illness, mental disorder- common
myths, treatment for depression, how to deal with depression, depressed child, causes of
depression, depression amongst childrenn, stigma attached to visiting psychiatrist,
message for parents, psychiatrists Pune”. Apparently, he has absolutely no law
background. He has treated me when I most needed it, a few years back [Sorry, I don't
know if confidentiality works the other way]. I found the meds extremely useful, but it
burned my pocket because Ruby Hall is the most expensive hospital in Pune. MHA of
course does not ever visit this hospital. I gather that his professional record with the
public health system and with MHA is very meagre. So he has not dipped into the MHA
mud, which many of you have.
So question is, what credentials, other than WHO full support, were sought by the
govenment before they appointed a co-ordinator? In this very group, there are people
whose contributions fill up several tens of google pages alone, other than their impressive
research and advocacy / movement records. They have also worked hard in the public
health system. They have been active in various advocacy spaces.
There are other questions. If we are looking at CRPD compliance, who should head such
a committee? Lawyer? User / survivor? Care giver? Psychiatrist? Etc. etc. Should this be
done through a mental health community alone, or should there be cross disability efforts
to change all laws? Should there be one law or many laws?? Etc. Etc. Through 200 years
we have spent enormous time on creating MH laws, and have immediately become
disgusted with the laws we ourselves created. The language of the minutes gives me
anxiety of one such historical circus in the name of the mentally ill. Egypt, where WHO
was active, ceated a law calling it "Law for care of Mental Patients" 2009. This is
supposed to be CRPD compliant. We are heading in the same direction it seems.
I don't know, there are many questions, and many groups, and many competitions right
now. I feel that if these efforts cannot even start with finding the right person to lead it,
then what is the point? Can we even talk about hard issues. It is not a 'mental health'
system; it is just a totally 'mental' system. Usse bach ke rehana acha hai. Pity there is no
law to put the 'mental' system away, it lacks total insight and capacity, and is dangerous,
haha...
Have a good day, and do write as if you are writing to a friend :-) I and anybody else
reading will welcome that very much. I mean no offence to Soumitra. I know and fully
respect him as a ethically grounded, private psychiatrist, with an effective practice here in
Pune. But the role required here is something else. I am sure he himself will see the point
and drop the role put on him.
Much love and affection,
Bhargavi.
-“As a bee seeks nectar from all kind of flowers, seek teachings everywhere.
Like a deer that finds a quiet place to graze, seek seclusion to digest all that you have
gathered.
Like a madman beyond all limits, go wherever you please and live like a lion completely
free of all fear.”
-- Ancient Tibetan text
-Snehi -An Organization for Psychosocial Support and Mental Health Care
B - 241, Ground Floor, G.K. I, New Delhi - 110048 India
Ph. +91-11-65418181, 65978181 Mobile: +91-9582208181
Fax: +91-11-29230164
Email: info@snehi.org snehi.india@gmail.com
Website: www.snehi.org
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Mental Health: The fundamental right of every human being.
Child Mental Health is an essential Child Right.
Prevention is root of cure.
Mental health is not only a health issue.
It is a social and development issue.