Once it comes through, the more than 600 patients at the mental hospital who have been cured in medical parlance but continue to spend their lives amidst the seriously ill, will have the chance to live like the rest of us, dealing with their own cooking, cleaning or gardening, besides the added perks of watching TV and listening to the radio.

``Out of the 2,500 inmates undergoing treatment at the Yerwada Mental Hospital, approximately 25 per cent are cured and can be shifted into these Half Way Homes immediately,'' says Dr AK Iqbal, superintendent of the hospital. ``Of these 50 comprise thosewhose relatives are not traceable, they are manageable patients who don't need constant medical supervision''.

The hospital has long been facing the problem of not knowing what to do with patients who can be discharged but whose families are either not to be found or are not willing to have them back. Compounding things is the presence of patients some of who have spent more than 50 years in the hospital and whose close relatives are either dead or in no condition to take care of an old person with the stigma of a stint at a `pagal khana' attached to him or her.

``A normal homely atmosphere is very important for these patients and we will try to provide them with the same,'' explains Dr Iqbal. The idea is to begin with at least five barracks for 10 patients each and extend it slowly. Each block will have its own dining room, toilets, bathrooms and living space. The hospital is in the process of contacting social organisations particularly NGOs who will provide voluntary service in providing companionshipand helping in job placements for those who are fit to work in an exteral environment. The idea is to give them the support society cannot be expected to give them and help them in becoming independent.

The Half Way Homes will also help facilitate the move form a mental hospital the outside world, which is not an easy one, says Dr Iqbal. The homes will not be constructed inside the mental hospital complex, giving patients complete freedom from the place they might have come to fear and it will function independentally on the lines of the Muktangan De-addiction Centre.