Bitti, now 20, remembers nothing beyond Ranchi Institute of Neuro Psychiatry and Allied Sciences (Rinpas), the premier mental health hub in the state which turns 90 on Friday.

The girl sent to Rinpas years ago and completely forgotten by her family, says: "This is my home. I don't remember anything about my parents or when I was brought here."

In a backhanded way, Bitti is lucky. One doesn't miss what one doesn't remember.

But, when she chillingly adds that no one from her family ever came to meet her or enquired about her well-being, it is apparent the stigma surrounding mental health, even when patients have recovered, is as strong as ever.

Dubbed long-stay patients, a term given to those who stay on for two years or more, Bitti, along with 76 women and 42 men, form the extended Rinpas family.

It also means, in most cases, that they have nowhere to go. Many like Soni and Usha have stayed here for decades, shunned by their families.

Soni, around 45 years of age and a Rinpas inmate for nearly 20 years now, remembers being a wife and a mother in Patna. "I have everyone, a husband, two sons and a daughter, many siblings. But, though I tried to rejoin my family several times after doctors certified me fit, no one accepted me," she cried.

Usha, another long-stay patient, also knows the pain of being dumped by her relatives. "The address they gave (Rinpas) while admitting me here turned out to be fake. They just got rid of me," she said.

"Once a mental patient, always a mental patient is the general attitude," said Rekha Roy, psychiatrist social worker. "It is more difficult with women. Mostly, their families shun them even after they recover and are certified by doctors as fit to rejoin their families."

"With men, society is a lot more accommodating," she admitted wryly.

This explains the fake addresses routinely given by relatives who dump mentally ill women to Rinpas and vanish without a trace.

In 2000, the total number of long-stay patients at Rinpas totalled 182, 104 men and 78 women. In 2014, there were 118 long-stay persons, 42 men and 76 women. It looks like more women are being abandoned now.

"Rinpas has the capacity to house 500 inmates. As of now, we have 631, which include 418 men and 213 women," Jayati Simlai, the institute's director in-charge, told The Telegraph.

She added they try hard to integrate mentally ill patients join the social mainstream after recovery. "We want them to rejoin their families and lead normal lives. We take help from police and family courts to locate relatives. We also follow up, on a regularly basis, the welfare of patients who rejoin their families."

Keeping up with latest trends in psychiatry, patients at Rinpas are not locked up. Rather, they are allowed maximum freedom of movement insode the sprawling hospital.

"Wards are always kept open, which patients respond well to. Injuries and assaults are very rare. In 2001-02, 15 patients had managed to escape. In 2014-15, you won't find a single case."

Rinpas may have changed, but society hasn't. Chatra resident Sumitra, admitted to Rinpas only 15 days ago, remembered being tied to a tree and beaten up mercilessly by her husband and relatives when she fell ill. Worry writ large on her face, Sumitra said: "I miss my son."

Bitti says there are plenty of things to do at Rinpas after getting well. She is among the 60-odd Rinpas inmates who make table cloths, baby dresses, winter wear, grass baskets, handkerchiefs, doormats, stoles, woollen shawls, ladies' handbags, thali covers, among others.

Their nimble fingers show skill and coordination, but the world outside Rinpas would rather stay blind.

Why is society so intolerant to mental illness? Tell ttkhand@abpmail.com