Kanke is a census town in Ranchi district in the Indian state of Jharkhand. Kanke has a large water reservoir called Kanke Dam, which is used to supply water to Ranchi City. The Kanke Mental Asylum (one of the largest in India) and Central Institute of Psychiatry (formerly known as European Mental Hospital) was started by the British who thought that the cooler climate of Ranchi would be salubrious to mental health.