There is no study on whether number of depression cases in the country have increased or not, even as a mental health programme has been underway since 1982, parliament was informed Friday.


In a written reply in the Lok Sabha, Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said that the national mental health programme was introduced in the country in 1982.

"A total of 123 districts in 30 states and uniot territories have been covered under the district mental health programme to provide detection, management, and treatment of mental disorders," he said.

The minister however also said that there was "no long term population based study in India to suggest that the number of cases of depression and consumption of antidepresseant drugs are increasing."

According to a study conducted by the World Health Organization, India has the highest rate of major depression in the world.

Around nine percent of people have been reported having an extended period of depression within their lifetime and nearly 36 percent suffered from "major depressive mode".