Report on the Lunatic Asylums in the Bombay Presidency for 1886.
No. 1758.
GENERAL DEPARTMENT.
Bombay Castle, 18th June 1887.
Letter from the Surgeon General with the Government of Bombay, No. S.B.—163, dated 28th
March 1887—Submitting the Annual Administration Report of the Lunatic Asylums in
the Bombay Presidency for the year 1886.
RESOLUATION.—The Governor in Council notices with satisfaction that the
additions made during the year 1886 to the asylums at Poona and Dhárwár
and the opening of a new asylum at Ratnágiri have in the opinion of the Surgeon
General rendered the accommodation for lunatics in this Presidency sufficient to
meet all probable requirements for some time to come. The general condition
of the six asylums appears to be on the whole good, but the Surgeon General
has pointed out a few improvements that appear to be necessary in those at
Ahmedabad, Dhárwár and Ratnágiri. As regards the Colába Asylum certain
defects, more especially its inconvenient situation, rendering its removal highly
desirable, were brought to notice in the course of the year by a special com-
mittee, on whose report separate orders were passed.
2. The general health of the inmates of the various asylums was good and
there was no epidemic disease, but the deaths were slightly more numerous
(52 as compared with 48) than in the previous year. The returns showing the
sick in asylum hospitals do not appreciably differ from those appended to last
year's report.
3. At the beginning of the year the asylum population numbered 630;
the admissions and re-admissions were 257; 164 patients were discharged, and
52 (including 25 at Colába and 13 at Hyderabad) died. The daily average
strength (653.3) was the same as in the previous year.
4. As regards the 257 patients admitted or re-admitted it is observed that
a considerably smaller proportion (62 as compared with 91) than in the previous
year consisted of Europeans, and a correspondingly larger one (110 as compared
with 77) of Hindus. The European soldiers admitted decreased from 79 to 49.
Of the patients classed as discharged 60 were "cured," 100 made over to their
friends, 3 escaped and 1 was transferred to the Colába Station Hospital.
5. The criminal lunatics numbered 91 at the beginning and 98 at the close
of the year, the daily average being 96.4 of whom 56.8 were inmates of Colába.
There is nothing further which calls for remarks as regards types or causes of
insanity.
6. Notwithstanding the cost incurred in the opening of the Ratnágiri
Asylum and in forming ten new cells for that at Dhárwár the Governor in Council
is glad to find that the total expenditure decreased from Rs. 1,39,518-3-10 to
Rs. 1,33,858-12-1 and the net cost per patient from Rs. 186-9-7 to Rs. 175-12-4.
The decrease in cost per patient was most marked at Hyderabad where it only
amounted to Rs. 72-3-9 as compared with Rs. 111-10-2 in 1885. In Colába,
though under this head there was a decrease from Rs. 249-7-1 to Rs. 232-13-3,
the Governor in Council hopes that a further reduction will be found possible
in the current year.
7. The Surgeon General reports that all the Superintendents performed
their duties carefully and efficiently. He inspected all the asylums in the Pre-
sidency Proper, and, as usual, has submitted a very satisfactory and concise
report. The manner in which the asylum visitors performed their duties should
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