Historical Archive

Historical ArchiveMedicine

History of mental asylums in India

The earliest mental hospital was established at Bombay in 1745, which could accommodate only 30 mentally-abled patients. The first government run lunatic asylum was set-up, especially for ridiculous soldiers, at Monghyr in Bihar on 17 April 1795. During that period, excited patients were treated with opium, hot baths, sometimes, leeches were applied to suck their blood and even music was also used as a mode of therapy to calm down them.

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BiharHistorical Archive

When a British Captain left 953 Indian Hajjis (Pilgrims) to die in the Ocean

On 11th August 1880, the whole World woke up to the shocking news that SS Jeddah, a ship carrying 953 hajjis (pilgrims for Mecca), had drowned in the sea near Cape Guardafui, near the easternmost point of Africa, on 8th August. All on board perished except the captain, his wife, the chief officer, the chief engineer, the assistant engineer, and 16 Indian crew members. The survivors were rescued by SS Scindia and landed at Aden in Yemen. 

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Historical ArchiveInterNational

The Indian Subcontinent Red Crescent Society’s Aid to the Ottoman State during the Balkan war in 1912:

The Balkan war that was declared in 1912 against the Ottoman Empire by Serbia, Montenegro, Bulgaria, and Greece brought many disasters with it. The cholera outbreak that started during the war proliferated rapidly among the Bulgarian Turks who were fleeing to Turkey, left the Ottoman Empire in a difficult position. In these difficult days the Red crescent came to their aid. The Indian Muslims sent the money they had collected to the red crescent.

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