In a nation of over 1.4 billion people, the debate concerning mental health has only recently surfaced in public thinking. Though drives and campaigns have been responsible for de-stigmatising the issue of mental health, therapeutic access in India remains unaffordable to large numbers of the population. The reasons are numerous: from a lack of trained personnel to prohibitive expenses, and the persistent legacy of colonial structures that inform therapeutic models. This leads to therapy as a luxury, a service for the elite, and not a basic healthcare right available to all.
One of the most striking problems behind the unavailability of therapy in India is that there is a critical dearth of qualified mental health specialists. The nation has only 3,000 psychiatrists, 1,000 psychologists, 500 psychiatric social workers, and 800 psychiatric nurses to serve a population of more than a billion, as stated by Sharma (2018). This glaring shortfall results in even those who are looking for help being unable to locate qualified therapists or being put on lengthy waiting lists. The...
