Pune’s Yerwada Mental Hospital Set for Major Upgrade as Teaching and Research Institute
Pune, 25th May 2026: The Maharashtra government has proposed converting regional mental hospitals in Yerwada, Thane, Ratnagiri and Nagpur into teaching institutes to strengthen mental healthcare education, research and the availability of trained professionals across the state.
The proposed institutes will offer courses related to mental health and psychiatry, including MD Psychiatry, MPhil in Clinical Psychology, MPhil in Psychiatric Social Work and Diploma in Psychiatric Nursing.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the initiative is not merely an expansion of healthcare infrastructure, but a “visionary and human-centric step” aimed at improving quality treatment, research and professional training in the mental healthcare sector.
He said the move would help provide accessible and modern mental healthcare services, particularly for underprivileged sections of society.
The four regional mental hospitals currently provide large-scale outpatient and inpatient services to thousands of patients across Maharashtra. Collectively, the hospitals have around 5,700 beds, along with substantial infrastructure and manpower.
According to the state government, the proposal seeks to utilise the existing infrastructure to develop advanced educational and training centres focused on mental health.
The initiative is being implemented under the Centre’s Manpower Development Scheme, specifically the “Strengthening PG Department in Mental Health Specialities (Scheme B),” which aims to address the shortage of trained professionals in the mental healthcare sector.
Officials said that under the National Mental Health Programme (NMHP), special emphasis has been placed on expanding postgraduate education in psychiatry and allied subjects since the 12th Five-Year Plan.
The government has already approved the launch of postgraduate and specialised mental health courses at the regional mental hospitals in Thane, Yerwada and Nagpur.
