Initiatives taken by state and central governments are always aimed at comprehensive development, but at times decisions are taken with a very insensitive approach while crossing all limits of absurdity.
Recently, Gujarat government introduced a mental health program in schools as a part of the School Health Programme, and the questions it is asking are based upon a child’s gender identity.
In one of such initiatives,’Mental School Health Programme’ launched by the state government for school-going children between the ages of 4 and 16 years. The module running into 32 pages is to be launched by the Gujarat health department in association with the education department.
The seven-page questionnaire made for parents and teachers includes 16 mental diseases. It also includes questions like, ‘whether a boy behaves like a girl’ and ‘a girl like a boy’, ‘whether a girl expresses her wish to be a boy and a boy expresses his wish to be a girl’, and ‘whether a child gets consumed in thoughts of his/her gender most of the times’. The respondents can choose answers ranging from ‘not true’ to ‘always true’.
As per reports, the questions are framed by experts who possess a very good understanding of mental health condition of children.
Explaining why they included mental health in the school programme, Education Minister Bhupendrasinh Chudasama told The Indian Express : “Adding mental health adds another dimension to the programme, making it a comprehensive health project. Through this, early detection and cure of mental illnesses that usually either go undetected or uncured will be possible. If detection happens at an early stage, not only will he be able to concentrate on studies, but society will also get a good citizen.”