Alcoholism in Kerala is a state of mental illness which the Keralites have overlooked over the years, according to T.P. Sreenivasan, Vice Chairman and Executive Head, Kerala State Higher Education Council.
He was inaugurating the three-day international symposium on Evidence in Global Mental Health on Wednesday organised by the Social Work Department of Rajagiri College of Social Sciences. He also said the alarming growth in the suicide rates in Kerala contributed to around 50 per cent of the national statistics. Father Jose Cleetus Plackal CMI presided over the function that was part of the 15{+t}{+h}edition of Development Yearnings of a United and Transformed India.
Dr. Joseph I. Injodey, Principal, Rajagiri College of Social Sciences, Dr. Mary Venus Joseph, Dean and Administrator, Rajagiri College of Social Sciences, Dr. Sr. Lizy P.J., head, Social Work Department, Dr. Raju Vargheese, University of Maryland, the U.S. and Dr. Ineke Way, Western Michigan University, the U.S, spoke on the occasion.
Special addresses were given by Dr. Martin Webber, Anniversary Reader in Social Work and Director, International Centre for Mental Health Social Research, University of York, Dr .Naru Pal, Public Health Physician and Head, Population Health, WA Country Health Service, Western Australia and Dr. A.T. Jotheeswaran, Indian Institute of Public Health, Hyderabad.
