Shekhar Seshadri

Shekhar Seshadri is awarded the Keshav Desiraju Memorial Award for Outstanding Public Service in Mental Health, 2024, for his exceptional contributions to child and adolescent mental health in India.

Through a notable career of over 35 years and as former Senior Professor in the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and Dean and Director at NIMHANS, Dr. Seshadri’s expertise spans childhood trauma, gender, sexuality, developmental disabilities and life skills education, with a commitment to public
education and capacity-building.

Dr Seshadri has been instrumental in policy and legal initiatives, engaging in key discussions on the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act 2012 and the Juvenile Justice Act 2015, and serving as a working group member of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights. He was instrumental in the
establishment of the NIMHANS Community Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service Project, which developed into SAMVAD, a unique national initiative and integrated resource for child protection, mental health, and psychosocial care, supported by the Ministry of Women & Child Development, Government of India.

Dr Seshadri’s contributions as a public mental health professional and his impactful work in the community, including through the use of innovative tools such as art, music and theatre, significantly extending beyond his academic and clinical work, make him a worthy recipient of this award.