Mental health in focus as Sitharaman announces NIMHANS 2.0 for north India

Emphasising mental health, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday announced the establishment of a second National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences or NIMHANS in north India. The first NIMHANS is located in Bengaluru. Presenting the Union Budget 2026-27 in Parliament, Sitharaman also said the national mental health institutes in Ranchi (Jharkhand) and Tezpur (Assam) will also be upgraded as regional apex institutions. ''There are no national institutes for mental healthcare in north India. We will, therefore, set up a NIMHANS-2 and also upgrade the national mental health institutes in Ranchi and Tezpur as regional apex institutions,'' Sitharaman said in her Budget speech. Noting that emergencies expose families, particularly the poor and the vulnerable, to unexpected expenditure, she said, ''We will strengthen and increase these capacities by 50 per cent in district hospitals by establishing emergency and trauma care centres.''