TRIENNIAL REPORT ON THE LUNATIC ASYLUMS IN THE
CENTRAL PROVINCES FOR THE YEARS 1909, 1910 AND 1911.
Officers-in-charge.—At
the last triennium there were two asylums in the
Central Provinces—one at Jubbulpore and the other at Nagpur. In 1907 all
the females were transferred from Jubbulpore to Nagpur and, on the completion
of the buildings undertaken to allow of the males from the Jubbulpore Asylum
being taken over, all the latter were transferred to Nagpur in 1910, the
Jubbulpore Asylum being finally closed
There is now only one asylum in
these Provinces. The under-mentioned officers were in charge of the Nagpur
Asylum:—
Lieutenant-Colonel R. B. Roe, I. M S., from 1st January 1909 to 6th May 1909.
Do.
A Buchanan, I. M. S., from 7th May 1909 to 7th November 1909.
Do. R. B. Roe, I. M. S., from 8th November 1909 to 3rd January 1911.
Captain M. F. Reaney, I. M. S., from 4th January 1911 to 8th March 1911.
Lieutenant-Colonel R. B. Roe, I. M. S., from 9th March 1911 to 29th April 1911.
Do.
A. Buchanan, I. M. S., from 30th April 1911 to 31st December
1911.
The Jubbulpore Asylum for the period it was in existence was in charge
of :—
Lieutenant-Colonel A. Silcock, I. M. S., from 1st January 1909 to 24th March 1909.
Major P. F. Chapman, I. M. S., from 25th March 1909 to 1st March 1910.
Statement I.
2. Owing to the abolition of the Jubbulpore Asylum, some difficulty arises
in making comparisons between the figures of this
triennium with those of the previous triennium. The
Jubbulpore figures have therefore, where necessary, been included with those
of Nagpur.
Accommodation
and population.—The
accommodation of the Nagpur
Asylum, which was for 254 (137 males and 117 females) at the close of the last
triennium, was raised to 374 (257 males and 117 females) in 1009 and to 399
(273 males and 126 females) in 1910 and 1911. At the close of 1911 there
were 230 males and 56 females in the asylum. There was no over crowding
during the triennium. The largest number present on any one night during the
last three years was—
140
238
230
males and
„
and
„
and
75 females
73
„
56 „
in 1909.
in 1910.
in 1911.
The additional accommodation provided on the male side at Nagpur in the
course of the triennium consists of two blocks of solitary cells and four barracks
to accommodate 16 and 120 males respectively
Quarters for a Sub-Assistant
Surgeon, Clerk and Compounder and 44 rooms for the warders and menial
servants were also provided during the triennium
3. Admissions and re-admissions.—At
the close of the last triennium 301
lunatics remained in the Asylum. There were 277 admissions in the three years
under report against 215 in the preceding three years. It should be explained that
in the report for 1907 the number of females shown as admitted were 52, but as
36 of these had been transferred from Jubbulpore and were not really new
admissions, these 36 have not been included in the figure for the last triennium.
4 Discharges.—The discharges were 164 against 103 in the preceding
triennium, and the condition of each patient on discharge was "cured" 116,
" improved " 35, " not improved " 5 "and " otherwise " 8. Of the 8 discharged
"otherwise " in 1910 and 1911, 6 were transferred from the criminal to the non-
criminal list and 2 escaped. Both these escapes were criminal lunatics. One
was a male and the other a female. The former was charged under Section 307,
Indian Penal Code, and was in the ankylostomiasis gang and confined in a ward
under treatment. He escaped through the latrine in May 1911. The roof of the
latrine has since been provided with a ceiling and the latrine exit with a cross bar
in order to prevent similar escapes. The female lunatic was charged under
the Railway Act for travelling without a ticket and did not appear to be very
mad. She escaped in 1910 by scaling over the railings. Of those discharged
" cured," 102 suffered from mania, 11 from melancholia, 2 from idiocy and 1 from
dementia.