World Mental Health Day, World Day Against the Death Penalty, World Homeless Day 2026 (10 October)

09-10-2026 · English

Topics: Important Days · 9 October 2026 Current Affairs (UPSC / TNPSC / SSC / RRB)

News

Three world days fall on 10 October. World Mental Health Day 2026 theme (World Federation for Mental Health – WFMH): 'Lived Experiences Heard: Real Voices, Real Change'. The 24th World Day Against the Death Penalty theme: 'Stories for Life'. World Homeless Day has been observed since 2010 and has no yearly theme.

Key facts

Background

• India's mental health: the Mental Healthcare Act 2017 – Section 115 presumes a person who attempts suicide was under severe stress, so they are not punished. National Mental Health Programme 1982; 'Tele-MANAS' 24-hour helpline 14416 (10 Oct 2022); National Suicide Prevention Strategy 2022.
• Death penalty in India: only in the 'rarest of rare' cases – Bachan Singh v. State of Punjab (1980). Article 72 – the President's pardoning power; Article 161 – the Governor's. India executes by hanging.
• Homelessness: Census 2011 counted about 17.7 lakh homeless people in India. 'Shelter for Urban Homeless' (DAY-NULM); Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY, 2015). The Supreme Court held the right to shelter part of Article 21 (Chameli Singh case, 1996).
• The WFMH was founded in 1948; World Mental Health Day was first observed in 1992, with WHO support.

Tamil Nadu link: the Institute of Mental Health, Kilpauk, Chennai, began in 1794 – among India's oldest mental hospitals. The Supreme Court used Article 142 to release Perarivalan, jailed in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, on 18 May 2022.

Source: WFMH; World Coalition (worldcoalition.org); World Homeless Day website

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