India’s mental health crisis is not only an intangible crisis but an overdue economic and social disaster. With almost 200 million Indians—14% of the population—afflicted with mental disorders, the scale of the crisis is enormous. But India spends only 0.05% of its GDP on mental health. It means that out of the nation’s total economic output, a fraction—a paltry five paise for every hundred rupees—is spent on mental health facilities, such as hospitals, awareness generation, rehabilitation, counseling, and preventive treatment. Not only is this low in terms of numbers but also relative to the world: while the WHO suggests that nations spend at least 5% of their health budget on mental health, India spends barely about 1% of its health budget on this area. Most countries spend between 5% and 18% of their healthcare budget on the subject.

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