CATEGORY: Society

In 2014, Srividhya didn’t imagine she would help dozens navigate through mental illness, consistently pushing them to reflect and dream of a better life. The 55-year-old’s routine involves shuttling between ten homes for the mentally ill run by The Banyan, a Chennai-based NGO, across Kovalam. A long list of daily tasks ensues — attending to the mental health needs of service users, supervising hygiene, functioning, and vital signs, and noting medications, as well as participating in group discussions, among others. “When clients say they are glad I’m coming, it feels like a certification beyond money, pride and fame. It feels…

76-year-old Bela Nag, a retired school teacher in Kolkata, finds urban life increasingly isolating. “Young people have no patience with the elderly,” she says, “Availing basic services has become a challenge due to technological advancements and wide scale adoption.” Bela’s sentiments only reflect what is reality for many seniors across urban India who are constantly grappling with the pressure of adapting to exploding cities, migration and rapid digital change. Their predicament brings to the fore larger questions around the effect of city living on the mental health of seniors, especially those who live alone. What affordable, stigma-free, accessible solutions can…

Fifty-five-year-old Gnana Bharathi, a scientist at the Central Leather Research Institute and a wheelchair user for over two decades, rarely takes the bus anymore. Chennai’s bus stops and termini, he says, are designed in a way that makes independent travel “nearly impossible”— from reaching the stop safely, to getting onto the platform and finally boarding the bus — without physical risk. So, when the Greater Chennai Corporation declared the Vivekananda House Bus Stop on Kamarajar Salai as an accessible, ‘model bus stop’, he decided to try it.“When I arrived at the location in my wheelchair, I couldn’t even access the…

Amidst the green hues of the Lalbagh Botanical Gardens in Bengaluru, conversations on mental health are getting a new shade. On one Saturday morning each month, beneath the majestic trees, people from different backgrounds gather to interact with mental health professionals. The discussions span a wide variety of themes such as emotional well-being, suicide prevention, digital overuse and much more, creating an open forum where dialogue replaces one-way information. This initiative, called Community Connect, envisioned by the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS), converts a public park into a space for shared learning and support. The Mental Health…

On a normal day, fatigue is a persistent challenge for Smitha Sadasivan, Senior Adviser at the Disability Rights India Foundation and a person living with Multiple Sclerosis. Yet, it is manageable with rest periods, nutritional supplements, hydration, and some mild activity. But heatwaves worsen her symptoms. "During heatwaves, none of these measures help. Only limited nutrition and hydration offer some relief,” says Smitha. Extreme climate events, such as heatwaves, floods, or cyclones, pose problems for everyone. Yet for people with disabilities, the challenges are far greater, as daily barriers to safety and mobility become worse during such crises. Smitha explains…

When a 30-year-old man from Karnataka felt overwhelmed by suicidal thoughts and a deep sense of hopelessness, he reached out to a government-run tele-counselling helpline. On the other end of the line was a trained counsellor from Tele MANAS, India’s national tele-mental health programme. The counsellor listened patiently, offered emotional support, and guided him to a nearby mental health hospital under the District Mental Health Programme (DMHP) for further care. In another case, a 17-year-old student, anxious about his upcoming exams, called the same helpline. He received practical advice, study tips, and daily motivation. Two years later, he called back…

Thirty-year-old Yallamma Shankar migrated to Bengaluru from Koppal district in northern Karnataka 14 years ago. She settled in Sumannahalli, in the western part of the city, and took up free-roaming waste work to make ends meet. Initially, she was glad to work outdoors in a city known for its good weather. Every day, she left her home at 5 am and worked till 2 pm, walking up to 10 kilometres a day to collect waste. “But in the last decade, summers have become unbearable. I feel giddy, dehydrated, and often lose three days of work each month because I fall…

On August 9, Syed Farhan, a Zomato delivery worker, fell into an open drain in Hyderabad while completing a delivery. In a video tweeted by Telangana Gig and Platform Workers Union (TGPWU) on X, Farhan is seen narrating his ordeal: “The water was [at a high] level and it was hard to understand the depth since nothing else was parked. My bike drowned and my phone, worth ₹20,000, also stopped working. My bike was worth ₹1.4 lakhs…I was still paying for it monthly.” In the video, he says he has been working for Zomato for the past seven years and…

Anagha Satam's* son was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) at the age of six and a half, following a suggestion from his private writing tutor to get him evaluated. But Anagha's initial attempts to share the results with her son's school were dismissed. Though the school authorities eventually acknowledged her concerns, Anagha found that the special educators there lacked the right approach and were focused on the child reaching a certain rank in class. “He has ADHD,” she says, “and the special educator's job is to help him manage his symptoms and to teach him that it is…

Mumbai recently witnessed unprecedented protests that brought its road and rail services to a standstill, disrupting daily life. Around 60,000 protesters from across Maharashtra converged in the city between August 29 and September 2, demanding Maratha caste reservations under the Other Backward Class (OBC) category. For five days, protestors blocked trains and roads, affecting lives and livelihoods across the metropolis. As the capital and political nerve centre of Maharashtra, Mumbai regularly draws protestors from all corners of the state. This is especially true around Azad Maidan, the city’s designated protest site. Those residing and working in South Mumbai, where the…