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Background: In the context of an alarming increase in the magnitude of type 2 diabetes mellitus in Indian population, the prevailing perceptions and practices of diabetics assume immense importance in the control of disease. Methods: This study was conducted with the aim of assessing the knowledge, attitude and self-reported practices regarding diabetes among the patients attending an OPD in a tertiary care hospital in Kolkata using a pretested questionnaire. Results: The findings of this study revealed that knowledge regarding symptoms and complications of the disease was poor except for frequent urination (42.2%) and eye complication (62.5%); however, only 25% patients had gone for eye examination during the last 1-year of their treatment. Awareness on detecting early complications of diabetes like periodic eye examination, BP monitoring and awareness on hypoglycemia, foot care were found to be poor. Attitude toward regular exercise and dietary modification in diabetics was found to be favorable in the majority; however, while compliance to dietary modification was reported to be high (82.8%) it was low with regular exercise (32.8%). Conclusion: Diabetic patients rely mostly on drugs and dietary modification for disease control while neglecting other lifestyle modification. Promotion of healthy lifestyle modifications and self-care should be incorporated as part of diabetes education in all treatment facilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]