Central government informed invited tenders for an online portal that would provide information about mental health facilities.

Case: Gaurav Kumar Bhansal vs Union of India

Bench: Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Justices Hima Kohli and JB Pardiwala

On Tuesday, the Central Government informed the Supreme Court it had invited tenders for an online portal that would provide real-time information about mental health facilities across the country.

Madhavi Divan, Additional Solicitor General, informed the bench that a dashboard will be available on the portal for providing real-time information regarding mental health facilities. Divan reported that all State governments will be called for a demonstration in 15 days, and the portal will be operational within a month.

The portal will provide details about the availability of mental health institutions, facilities provided, occupancy, capacity, and region-wise distribution of halfway houses, according to the draft.

On the online dashboard, information about halfway houses will also be available.

Background

The Court was hearing an application from advocate Gaurav Kumar Bansal seeking an order to unchain the inmates near Hussain Tekri shrine.

According to the plea, section 95 of the Mental Healthcare Act, of 2017 prohibits chaining people with mental illness. Further, the Supreme Court ruled in 2019 that chaining mentally ill people was "atrocious" and "inhuman".