Group home for mentally ill to come up at Chandigarh’s Sector 31 in a year

Chandigarh administrator Banwarilal Purohit directs UT officials to set up a permanent Group Home for mentally ill residents at the Government Rehabilitation Institute for Intellectual Disabilities in Sector 31

UT administrator Banwarilal Purohit on Wednesday directed UT officials to set up a permanent Group Home for mentally ill residents at the Government Rehabilitation Institute for Intellectual Disabilities (GRIID) in Sector 31 within a year.

Out of the existing 8.5-acre plot, 2 acres will be utilised for the group home with provision for separate entry and exit, Purohit said. (ANI File Photo)

Out of the existing 8.5-acre plot, 2 acres will be utilised for the group home with provision for separate entry and exit, Purohit said.

Purohit’s directions came during a meeting on Wednesday with UT adviser, additional solicitor general of India Satya Pal Jain, health and social welfare secretaries, director social welfare and a delegation of parents and guardians of mentally ill persons.

During the meeting, the administrator heard the objections by parents, guardians and activists regarding the temporary group home proposed at the CHB small flats in Maloya.

Following the discussion, he directed that a permanent facility will instead come up at GRIID.

The UT chief architect will prepare drawings for the group home in consultation with the departments of health and family welfare, social welfare and women and child development, along with the parents/guardians of the mentally ill persons.

Purohit directed officials to complete the tender process within two months and told the department of engineering to complete the construction work expeditiously within one year.