Section 31 - Mental Healthcare Act, 2017

31. Appropriate Government to take measures as regard to human resource development and training, etc.-

(1) The appropriate Government shall take measures to address the human resource requirements of mental health services in the country by planning, developing and implementing educational and training programmes in collaboration with institutions of higher education and training, to increase the human resources available to deliver mental health interventions and to improve the skills of the available human resources to better address the needs of persons with mental illness.

(2) The appropriate Government shall, at the minimum, train all medical officers in public healthcare establishments and all medical officers in the prisons or jails to provide basic and emergency mental healthcare.

(3) The appropriate Government shall make efforts to meet internationally accepted guidelines for number of mental health professionals on the basis of population, within ten years from the commencement of this Act.