'You Are Not Alone': Govt Boosts Mental Health Helpline Tele-MANAS for Air Crash Victims
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According to the latest posters designed to spread awareness, 'Tragic events can affect our minds deeply – even if we are not directly involved.'
'You are not alone. Help is just a call away," reads the new poster the central government has floated to support the mental health of people directly or indirectly impacted by the Air India plane crash tragedy.
The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare is planning to intensify its mental health campaign through the Tele-MANAS helpline, 14416. The aim is to offer support to families of air crash victims as well as healthcare workers involved in the aftermath. A mild uptick of around 5 per cent in incoming calls has already been observed compared to the usual volume.
Tele-MANAS is a comprehensive mental health care service available for Indians under the National Tele-Mental Health Programme of India. The public can access this helpline by dialling a toll-free number. Callers are attended to by trained counsellors and psychiatrists.
'There is roughly a jump of 5 per cent in the number of incoming calls," said Dinakaran Damodharan, assistant professor of psychiatry at the National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, Bengaluru (NIMHANS).
'There has only been a slight increase in the number of calls… While this is not a huge surge, the reason could be that individuals and healthcare professionals are not fully aware of the help they can get from this helpline." On average, he said, the helpline receives around 40 calls every day, but now, there is a mild surge.
When asked about the top queries of callers, Damodharan said the details of conversations are confidential and not recorded. 'Hence, it's just between the caller and the consultant."
It says it's completely normal to feel 'sadness or helplessness", 'anxiety or fear", 'anger or frustration". In a subhead on 'What can you do?", it suggests: 'Talk about your feelings with someone you trust."
It also advises to 'Limit how much news you watch" and 'Take deep breaths, stay grounded."
Damodharan from NIMHANS advised that the helpline can be used by healthcare professionals as well as forensic experts who may be experiencing burnout, in addition to the general public and relatives of the deceased.
Plan to give social media boost
The government is planning a social media push to boost awareness about the free mental health support available through this helpline.
While the campaign was first launched in Gujarat on the same day as the plane crash (12 June), it was gradually rolled out across India. However, the government has now decided to promote the campaign through its social media channels, widely.
'The campaign was already there, but considering the emotional toll, the team is planning to expand the awareness drive. While some states have their own Tele-MANAS profiles on social media platforms like X, Facebook, and Instagram, others will use the state health department handles," said a senior official privy to the development.
'We are releasing awareness messages in Gujarati, Hindi, and English so far, but languages may be added based on inputs received by the team and the geography of incoming callers. To attend to calls related to the plane crash tragedy, the languages available at the helpline number are Gujarati, Hindi, and English."
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