New Delhi: The first ‘Keshav Desiraju Memorial Award for Outstanding Public Service in Mental Health’ was awarded to Ajay Chauhan on Wednesday for his contributions as a Nodal State Officer for Mental Health in Gujarat since 2006.
Chauhan has also made significant improvements to the District Mental Health Program in the state since 2006.
The Keshav Desiraju Memorial Award aims to recognize the contributions and efforts made by government officials in the field of mental health in India. The award consists of a commendable plaque and a cash prize of Rs 50,000.
Keshav Desiraju, the union’s former health secretary, is credited with going forward the Mental Health Bill 2012, which later became the Mental Health Bill 2017. The Bill, considered groundbreaking, introduced provisions allowing a person to indicate the nature of the treatment to be provided if she or he were to develop mental illness later in life.
Jurors for the recent award included Sujatha Rao, former union secretary at the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare; Amitabha Bhattacharya, former senior adviser in charge of education and culture at the Planning Commission of India; and Anant Bhan Anant, Associate Visiting Professor, Yenepoya (presumed university) in Karnataka.
“We must confess that we were pleasantly surprised to receive a large number of requests from people who are working with the government in the field of mental health. It made choosing the awardee quite a challenge,” Rao said as he announced the winner.
“Ajay Chauhan has an impressive career track record of working within the system since 2002. He is highly regarded within Gujarat where he has been working in high level positions. As a member of high-level state and national committees, he has been able to guide and influence policy,” Rao said.
“His work stands out in terms of real-world impact. He made bold moves to promote the district’s mental health facilities, promoting the district’s mental health program, improving accessibility to mental health support, etc. Rao added.
‘Desiraju was a very rare person’
In addition to the Mental Health Bill, Desiraju also led the establishment of the National Technical Advisory Group on Immunization (NTAGI), a group of experts that currently makes all key decisions on covid vaccination in India.
“I remember Desiraju. I would like to say that I had the opportunity to work with him and spend time with a great person. I admired him for his patience in developing the mental health sectors in the country and I would try to follow him in developing advancements in mental health in my state,” said Chauhan accepting the award.
At the virtual award ceremony, Gopalkrishna Devdas Gandhi, a former diplomat who served as Governor of West Bengal from 2004 to 2009, paid a moving tribute to Desiraju.
“Desiraju was a very rare person… A scholar if ever there was one. He confused intellectuals, freethinkers, dissidents, activists, bohemians by choosing the road most traveled: the Indian Administrative Service. He knew that he could read as much as he wanted and also do his ‘sarkari’ work,” Gandhi said.
Desiraju’s sister, Srilata Iyer, was also present at the ceremony.
“His education formed the basis of his understanding of inequality, a theme that is reflected in the work he carried out in the civil service: working for the disadvantaged in Almorah, recognizing mental health, and not just physical health, as a problem to be addressed. in India,” she said.
Also read: Why do teens struggling with emotional distress self-harm? This study answers
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