• Articles
• 02, Jan 2026

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Disability Management in Mental Illness: Roles, Responsibilities and Challenges

 

By B K Mehta, Subhash Das

 

Right from the first moment of being struck by a bolt from the blue when the parents/family members come to know that their child is having a disability because of mental illness, till they breath their last, the perspective of those parents can neither be imagined by those who fortunate not to have such an experience  nor can it be appropriately described by the parents. If there is really something like tossing in the grave or wandering like an insatiable soul, such parents may be doing that only.

 

The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 (RPWD 216) is a fruit which took nearly 10 years to ripen after a great  deal of labour and struggle by families of the disabled. Though the United Nations had asked for such an enactment in December 13, 2006, during its convention on the Rights of with Disabilities or commonly known as UNCRPD General Assembly Session 61, 2007), it was introduced  in the Parliament on February 7, 2014, and after a scare of its lapse, ( as some MPs were protesting against demonetization, thus stalling the process of Parliamentary proceedings), the bill was passed by the Lok Sabha on December 14, 2016. It finally became an Act after receiving the assent of the President of India on  on December 14, 2016. of India on 27 December  2016.

The RPWD Act, 2016, offers a new ray of hopes for the of those with a relative having disability. Most of the persons with disability (PWD) are not in a position to take proper care of themselves and it is the parents and family members who have to assist them. Without having associated themselves with the process leading to the enactment of RPWD Act 2016, for instance not even giving any suggestion, some people have heavily criticized this Act. However, it is the best ever plece of legislation for the benefit of PwD our country could ever had. As against seven conditions in the previous enactments in the "Persons with Disability Act" (PWD Act, 1995), the RPwD Act, 2016, recognizes 21 conditions as disabilities. Many options have been provided in this Act so that it is implemented in letter and spirit and the benefits reach up to the PwD as well as their family members. National and State-level commissioners and Grievance Redressal Officer at the State level have been provided with relevant powers by this Act.

Provisions for inclusive education, increased opportunities in employment, life with dignity, appointment of guardian, survey to assessment and then certification of PsD, and son on

have been clearly delineated in this Act.  Almost every aspect of life has been taken care of by this Act. Penal provisions for deprivation of rights to the PWD would ensure that they are neither treated without dignity nor their rights are violated.

The disability due to mental illness or mental condition is a bit different from that due to physical conditions. To the uninitiated as the disability due to mental illness cannot be   n easily perceived just from mere physical appearance, so often it may create confusion. Though the Act has been designed in a way so h\as to benefit the PWD due to mental illness as well, it is well worth mentioning the role of the key stakeholders, mainly the persons with mental illness (PMI) having disability, their family members and also the government machinery to a large extent.

First and foremost are the PwDs and their family members who have to be not only well versed with the various provisions of the Act, but also know about their roles and responsibilities. The patients and the family members should be aware of the various provisions mentioned in this Act. This will empower them to get the benefits as provided in the Act, which is their right , actually. In the present times where the flow of communication through mediums such as television and internet, is enormous, the onus greatly lies on the PMI and their family members to keep themselves updated regarding various provisions of the RPwD Act, 2016. PwD and family members can form "self-help groups (SHG)" with the help of which they can exchange their experience while pursuing their rights. Such SHGs can go a long way in reducing the extent of disability of the PwD. Though the Act does provide with different benefits (free education, job reservation, etc), often the family members as well as , the PwDs  may not be aware of such provisions. So , the SHGs formed by the family members of PwD can play a big role in promoting awareness about the various provisions of this Act and disseminate the information to those with disabilities. The SHGs in collaboration with non governmental organizations (NGOs) working in the field of disability can conduct a workshop to empower the PwD. In fact, in the past and even now many NGOs have contributed immensely in the rehabilitation of PwD, including those with mental illness (Chavan and Das, 2015).

The patients with disability and their family members now have an Act which tells them about their rights. This Act should thus pave the way for empowering the PwD and in the event  they feel that their rights are not being addressed then they can approach the court to get justice.

                                                There are however many challenges while pursuing the roles and responsibilities as stakeholders especially those who have mental illness. PMI requires a lot of moral,  emotional  and physical  support  and care from family who often have to involve themselves quite a lot in the caregiving process, and thus such families must be encouraged for carrying out such a strenuous job without any remuneration. In this context, Section 7(2) of the RPwD Act, 2016, mentions, "Any person or registered organisation who or which has reason to believe that an act of abuse, violence or exploitation has been, or is being, or is likely to be committed against any person with disability, may give information about it to the Executive Magistrate within the local limits of whose jurisdiction such incidents occur" and this provision may make the family for investigation and such consent, then what will members/caregivers of the and apprehensive do.. For example ,  If they use force to get a disease which may require a sample of blood to be drawn for investigations and such a person is not a position to give consent, what will the family members/caregivers do ? if they use force to get the blood sample,  they  would fall within the ambit of a  reportable, cognizable and punishable offense. In such a scenario , the Act may result in declaring such an act by the caregivers and/or family as a criminal act though did not have any ill intention. This would then make the Act a deterrent in providing appropriate care to those with mental illness.  Section 7(2) may thus seem to have been well phrased and perhaps need to be redrafted so as to allay fears of  family members . Families  play an important role in the care of the PMI in the Indian context considering that we have limited medical infrastructure. Hence, if the family members are scared away by a provision of the act, the entire well meant objective of this act would boomerang. Discouraging family Members would lead to PMI being grossly neglected and may even be abandoned completely. Even Section 38 has been introduced by ignoring the importance of the family and tends to introduce NGOs even we are the family is better place to look after the PMI Section 38 thus somehow highlights the excessive dependence upon NGOs and in a country like ours where the traditional family support system seems to have been grossly undermined.  These are but a few challenging issues that those caring for PwD due to mental illness have to be aware of.

ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE GOVERNMENT

Disability due to mental illness is linked to the productivity of a nation. Between 2012 and 2030, the economic loss associated with mental illness will be about one trillion US dollars which is quite substantial. Thus, our Government is a key stakeholder in this regard and has a huge role to play in reducing the impact due to disability as a result of mental illness. The RPwD Act clearly spells out duties and responsibilities of the government who is expected to create awareness and sensitization programs regarding the rights of PwD. The government has to facilitate ease of access to PwDs regarding transportation, communication, use of technology, and so on so as to minimize disability and enhance productivity. The Act mentions that the human resource should be developed so as to look into various issues related to the rights of PWD;  activities such as training among various professionals for the purpose of sensitization of the provisions of the Act, to enhance and foster independent living in those with disability, initiate capacity building program involving the PwD and so on should be planned. It will be pertinent to add here that the government is committed to ensuring that the PwD enjoy their right to equality and are not discriminated because of their disability. Another aspect that the government has to look into is the enhancement of mental health care infrastructure in the country and the rehabilitation needs of  Those with mental illness this will go a long way in reducing the disability due to mental illness.

 

Excerpts from Comprehensive Textbook on Disability by B S Chavan , Wasim Ahmed and Raj Kumari Gupta.