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Maharashtra's Mental Health Crisis: Patients Travel 500km for Care
6 Sep
Summary
- No district hospitals in Maharashtra have functional inpatient psychiatric units.
- Patients travel up to 500 kilometres for mental health treatment.
- Staff appointed for mental health programs are deployed elsewhere.
Patients with severe mental health conditions in Maharashtra are forced to travel up to 500 kilometres for admission due to a severe lack of functional inpatient psychiatric units. As of 2026-09-06T06:29:47+00:00, none of the state's 32 district hospitals have the mandated 10-bed units, which are crucial for decentralized mental healthcare under the District Mental Health Programme (DMHP).
The absence of these local facilities places a significant burden on the state's four regional mental hospitals (RMHs) in Pune, Thane, Nagpur, and Ratnagiri. This situation increases travel costs and logistical challenges for families seeking care for patients experiencing acute episodes. Consequently, healthcare professionals are urging for the strengthening of the mental health program and activation of these indoor facilities.
Despite the DMHP's objective to integrate mental healthcare with general services since its launch in 1996, the inpatient component remains non-operational at the district level. Staff, including psychiatrists and nurses appointed under the program, are frequently reassigned to other healthcare services. This widespread issue has prompted health activists to petition the government for the immediate implementation of the required psychiatric units.
