Chandigarh |Social workers seek meeting with Banwarilal Purohit for group home for mentally ill

Chandigarh-based Citizens has requested UT administrator Banwarilal Purohit for a meeting regarding the temporary home for the mentally ill

Citizens for Inclusive Living, an association working for the dignity and welfare of people with mental disabilities in Chandigarh, has requested UT administrator Banwarilal Purohit for a meeting regarding the temporary home for the mentally ill city residents.

Social workers seek meeting with Banwarilal Purohit over demand for group home for mentally ill in Chandigarh. (HT File)

On March 17, Purohit had directed that 16 CHB flats at Maloya be allocated for setting up a temporary home for the mentally ill while the administration readies a dedicated facility for them in Sector 34.

However, in a letter to the administrator, association president Neelu Sarin wrote, “We have been requesting you and the adviser to convene a joint meeting of all stakeholders – UT social welfare officials, caregivers, parents and mental health professionals. The committee established to look into group homes has misled you. It has never bothered to take our inputs. We unanimously and strongly oppose the move of setting up an ‘interim facility at 16 small flats converted into a separate enclosure’. The concept and language is derogatory and inhumane.”