Citation

Kottai SR. Ethical Hum. Psychol. Psychiatry 2021; 23(2): 70-88.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2021, Springer Publishing Company)

DOI

10.1891/EHPP-2021-0004

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Ongoing farmers' protests have once again brought back the spotlight on the agrarian crisis in India. Even though upstream factors that perpetuate farmers' suffering, including the role of the state in promoting agrocapitalism, have been discussed extensively by scholars and activists across the spectrum, mental health discourses almost always frame it as a mental health problem to be addressed by increasing access to psychopharmaceuticals. Drawing on developments around farmers' protests and analysis of articles published in flagship journals of largest professional bodies of clinical psychologists and psychiatrists in India, I highlight the intimate relationship between neoliberal state and farmers' distress to which the mental health system shuts its ears and eyes obscuring and downplaying socio-structural determinants of farmers' mental health. © Copyright 2021 Springer Publishing Company, LLC.

Language: en

Keywords

protest; human; social justice; mental health; suicide; India; death; psychiatrist; distress syndrome; health care access; psychologist; intimacy; health care system; agricultural worker; Article; capitalism; social determinants of health; farmers' protests; mental health practice