The history of modern psychiatry in India, 1858-1947

Abstract

This article presents an introduction to the history of Indian psychiatry. It suggests that this history can be divided into four main periods, 1795 to 1857, 1858 to 1914, 1914 to 1947 and 1947 to the present day. The focus of the piece is on the periods 1858-1914 and 1914-1947, as it traces the main trends and developments of the colonial era and argues that the foundations of modern psychiatry in India were laid down in the period of British rule. A brief consideration of the post-Independence period suggests that the patterns established in the years of British rule have continued to influence the psychiatric system of modern India. Research for these conclusions is based on extensive archival work in Indian mental health institutions and in Indian records offices, as well as work conducted at the National Library of Scotland in Edinburgh and at the India Office Library, the Wellcome Institute Library and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

History of psychiatry in India

“…36) in the year 1858. [5] The Act was later modified by a committee appointed in Bengal in 1888. During this period, new asylums were also built at Patna, Dacca, Calcutta, Berhampur, Waltair, Trichinapally, Colaba, Poona, Dharwar, Ahmedabad, Ratnagiri, Hyderabad (Sind), Jabalpur, Banaras, Agra, Bareilly, Tezpur and Lahore.…”

“…[4] A concern with mental health has long been a part of Indian culture, which has evolved in a variety of ways, attempting to understand and negotiate psychological disorder. [5] This review takes a sneak peek into the foundations of modern psychiatry in India which has sailed through tides of time across the world.…”

Central Institute of Psychiatry: A tradition in excellence

“…[4] Patients were treated at secluded places in unhygienic conditions without any facilities to fulfill their basic needs. The condition worsened in the early years of twentieth century when there was substantial increase in the number of patients during World War I.…”

Psychiatry, colonialism and Indian civilization: A historical appraisal

“…There is a direct relationship of development of health and mental health during enlightened political leadership. The history and development of mental hospitals in India are well documented in the writings of Sharma,11 Varma,9 Mills3 and other writers 21214…”

“…It is true that during the period of colonization some elements of science were brought to psychiatry, but philosophy, culture and religion were already deep-rooted in the Indian tradition. James Mills,3 a historian, states that ‘a concern with mental health has long been a part of Indian cultures which evolved a variety of ways of attempting to understand and negotiate psychological disorder’. History is a kind of screen in which the past lightens the present and the present brightens the future.…”