No govt plan yet to treat, rehabilitate floating mental patients

Worst even, there is no plan yet for the floating mental patients who are considered as the most deprived section of the society.

"There is no specific government organisations for the floating mental patients. Moreover, the government has no plan for their treatment and rehabilitation in future," said Hafizul Islam Mian, director general of the social service department.

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He said although the number of floating mental patients is very negligible, everyone of us has the experience of seeing them who do not know their own identities and live in footpaths, rail stations, bus stands and launch terminals.

This correspondent had found five mental patients only on the Dhaka University campus whose identities could not be known.

Talking to students it was learnt that these mental patients fully depend on others to manage two squares of meals. Some of them roam on the campus nakedly.

When this correspondent contacted some government bodies, he noticed that they were not so much aware of the problem.

An official requesting anonymity said, "The government is least concerned about the problem of the floating mental patients."

As the mental patients have no ability to fight for establishing their rights, the government has no headache for them, he added.

"There are six vagrant shelters across the country where floating people like beggars and physically challenged are mainly rehabilitated. We cannot keep a floating mental patient in the shelters due to lack of facilities for treatment as well as legal constraints," said Siddiqur Rahman, deputy director of social service department (Vagrant).

"As the mental patients need complicated mental treatment, the health ministry should take up the matter," Rahman said, adding that social welfare ministry has already approached the health ministry in this regard.

But Dr Abdur Rashid, director (Hospital and Clinic), said the health ministry cannot provide treatment to these patients as it has no authority to collect them from different places.

He underscored the need for a special body for collecting the floating mental patients.

Director of the Mental Health Institute Prof Dr AH Mohammad Firoj said although some floating mental patients are admitted to the institute at the personal initiatives, but no patient has been admitted under the initiative of any government organisation.

"We will treat the floating mental patients at free of cost if they come through any government organisaton," he added.