Kerala High Court Sets November Deadline For State To Stock Up Mental Health Facility Medicines And Transport

The Kerala High Court has ordered the state government to ensure that mental health facilities are fully stocked with necessary medicines and transport vehicles by November 24. A bench consisting of Justice Devan Ramachandran and Justice Basant Balaji gave this directive, noting that mere promises are not enough and must be turned into real action. Earlier this year, these judges personally visited the facilities located in Thiruvananthapuram, Thrissur, and Kozhikode. During the proceedings, the Advocate General asked for permission to submit an action taken report by November 24 regarding boundary wall construction and hiring required staff. The court accepted this request after the state legal representative reported that building the compound walls is moving ahead quickly. Regarding hiring staff, the Advocate General requested two extra weeks because a new person recently took over as the Health and Family Welfare department secretary and needs time to review the files.

Context

High courts routinely monitor state welfare facilities through PILs and suo motu proceedings to protect vulnerable populations. Public mental health care facilities often face infrastructure and staffing challenges that require judicial oversight to resolve. The upcoming November 24 hearing will review whether the state has met these specific compliance targets.