Mental Health Issues of Tribal People in Jharkhand

Mental health is one of the biggest causes of disability and carries enormous economic burden in India. Jharkhand is home to a large populations of tribes. The tribal populations have greater vulnerability to mental health issues for multiple reasons. The impact of rapid social changes alters their lifestyles, beliefs and community living. The strain of acculturation of moving to urban spaces and use of alcohol and other substance predisposes them to a number of mental health issues . Mental health of tribal population is something that has been neglected till now and needs our attention. The Indian Psychiatric society stresses the lack of data on mental health of tribal population and the need for conduction of more research to bridge the gaps in knowledge. This paper deals with the various mental health related issues experienced by the tribal people of Jharkhand, its causes may be due to alcohol and substance abuse (mainly tobacco) which are often the of the culture which leads to various health related problems like mental retardation, Alzheimer’s disease. This paper also deals with the various steps initiated by the government for their rehabilitation like changing drinking habits in tribal people. Tribal people have to be educated and awareness has to be created about new coping strategies to overcome stress. Some of the major tribal groups of Jharkhand include Birhor, Asur, Birajia and Mal Paharia. Livelihood of tribes of Jharkhand depends on the natural resources that are directly affected by social change. Due to increase in urbanisation ,poverty among the tribes is increasing alarmingly which is one of the reasons of their retardation in mental health. In order to improve their conditions, education is one of the major step that needs to be taken up by the government.