NEW DELHI: The Union Women and Child Development Ministry has launched a project, for the first time, to address the mental health challenges being faced by children across India and is spending Rs 56 crore on it for over five years.
Under the scheme, the ministry has tied up with the National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro-Sciences, Bengaluru to train teachers, judicial officers, cops and those working in child care institutions across the country.
Through the programmed launched in June 2020, during the Covid19 lockdown. nearly 41,000 stakeholders across 28 states have been trained so far to recognize the children dealing with mental health issues and help them.
In a press briefing, Union WCD minister Smriti Irani said on Tuesday that talks are also on with the Union Panchayati Raj ministry to address the issues faced by kids in rural areas.
As per a recent UNICEF report, while an estimated 50 million children in India suffered from mental health issues even before the Covid-19 pandemic, the outbreak had a profound impact on the health and psycho-social well-being of the kids.
Closure of schools prevented children from gaining access to learning and limited interaction with their peers, said UNICEF in a statement.