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The Tamil Nadu government is looking at scaling up its community-based healthcare models in the wake of rising instances of people living with mental health issues. Chief Secretary M Muruganandam said its healthcare models, Emergency Care and Recovery Centres (ECRC) and Home Again, would be expanded to all districts.
Speaking at the launch of the impact report by The Banyan, a non-governmental organisation (NGO), in Chennai on Saturday, February 7, Muruganandam said nearly 12% of Tamil Nadu’s population are living with mental health issues, and rising urbanisation is adding to the stress.
Tamil Nadu has been running programmes dealing with mental health in all districts and de-addiction centres in all 25 government medical colleges in the state. “We are now focusing now on rescue and emergency care to rehabilitation, housing and helping homeless people living with mental health problems integrate with society,” he said.
The impact report states that more than half of ECRC beneficiaries were reunited with their families, and three-quarters of those discharged from National Health Mission (NHM) sites were pursuing aftercare services. Home Again residents had shown sustained improvements in community integration in participating neighbourhoods and civic and economic life. The Banyan, with the support of government and other NGOs, has reached over 5,400 homeless persons with psychosocial disabilities over three decades, the report said.
“We are studying the impact of ECRC and Home Again programmes and based on the outcomes, the government would like to expand them across the state,” Muruganandam said and added that World Bank-supported rights projects and state funding could help scale up these models.
The Chief Secretary also said the government was ensuring that residents of mental health homes received Aadhaar cards, disability pensions, ration cards, housing and access to skill and livelihood training.
“The objective is for people to return to their families, reintegrate into society, and lead a dignified life,” he said.
What are ECRC and Home Again centres
ECRC offers crisis care, treatment, stabilisation, and recovery-oriented support through multidisciplinary teams, with discharge planning focused on family reunification, independent living, or supported housing.
ECRC was developed through The Banyan’s work with homeless persons with mental health issues and has been adapted across Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra and Odisha.
Since 2020, ECRCs in Tamil Nadu have been associated with the public health system through a partnership with the National Health Mission (NHM), operating inside district hospitals through a tripartite agreement between NHM, civil society organisations, and the Institute of Mental Health. As of December 2025, this model operates across 31 districts in the state.
Home Again is a supported housing intervention programme for people with long-term mental health conditions who have experienced homelessness or prolonged institutionalisation. It ensures the small groups live in rented homes in regular neighbourhoods and receive support through personal assistants, case managers, and access to healthcare and welfare services.
In Tamil Nadu, the Home Again programme has been implemented in Chengalpattu, Trichy, Tiruvallur, Coimbatore, and Thoothukudi.
M Lakshmi, Commissioner for the Welfare of the Differently Abled, said Home Again formed the final stage of a care that begins with rescue through ECRCs, followed by treatment in mental health homes and skill development in homes.
“Forty people are currently living in Home Again houses. Six have been reunited with their families, and 10 have successfully found livelihoods and are managing their homes independently,” she said.
Saravanan, Managing Director of Real Social Organisation of Youth Academy, Thoothukudi and Tirunelveli, shared the case of a man rescued in Sivaganga who later entered Home Again housing.
“We traced his family in Bihar, who believed he had died 20 years ago. His reunion with them reflects the success of this programme,” he said.
J Radhakrishnan, Chairman and Managing Director of Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB), said disasters and emergencies disproportionately affected vulnerable populations, including persons with mental health issues, and stressed the need for preparedness and immediate interventions during crises.
Archana Padmakar, CEO of The Banyan, said the organisation’s work had led to the creation of 1,091 beds over five years for homeless people with mental illness and 138 Home Again houses across the country.
“Fifty percent of those who accessed these services have returned to their families, with a readmission rate of just 2%,” she said.