Administrator
15 June 2026
*AI-generated representative image
National Statistical Office 2025 survey of over 1.39 lakh households showcases more Indians than ever before are seeking medical care. Those visiting government hospitals and clinics for outpatient care — consultation, diagnosis, tests, prescription — are not having to pay anything.
About half of the hospitalised patients are paying below Rs. 1,100 for their care. The poorest of households are benefitting from low or no out-of-pocket healthcare costs at such facilities. These are signs that people have renewed trust in the public healthcare system, revealed NSO survey report accessed by JharkhandStateNews.com.
Investigation revealed that this did not happen by chance. Increased government spending and systematic healthcare upgrades at block and district level have driven India's progress towards universal health coverage, the same report claims.
From insurance schemes to expansion of healthcare infrastructure, India has systematically rebuilt its public health foundations over past 12 years of the Narendra Modi regime.
The National Health Mission, with its myriad disease control and care programmes, is making healthcare delivery more targeted. A new and robust digital health infrastructure, along with budding artificial intelligence integrations, is taking healthcare delivery to the next level.
To meet rising demand, the government has more than doubled its capacity to train doctors and nurses the system needs. At the centre of these changes is the world's most ambitious universal health coverage programme – the Ayushman Bharat scheme, launched in 2018.
Ayushman Bharat: Universal Health Coverage for Every Citizen
Ayushman Bharat — meaning Long Life India — provides affordable, quality healthcare to people from all walks and all stages of life. It has emerged as a critical lifeline for socio-economically weaker sections and senior citizens above 70 years. The Ayushman Bharat architecture rests on four key pillars that collectively strengthen preventive, promotive, curative, and digital healthcare systems across the country.
Pillar 1: Public Health Insurance Through Ayushman Bharat – Pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY)
In continuation of the National Health Mission, the government introduced the National Health Policy (NHP), 2017. It outlines a transformative vision for India’s healthcare system. The policy recognised emerging healthcare challenges, including the rise of non-communicable diseases and escalating treatment costs. To tackle these issues, the government in 2018 launched Ayushman Bharat - Pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY). It has now emerged as the world’s largest publicly funded health assurance scheme.
AB-PMJAY provides free public health insurance up to Rs. 5 lakh per family per year to socio-economically deprived families. Such families make up about 40 per cent of the population, or about 12 crore families. The insurance saves these families from catastrophic healthcare bills.
In a landmark expansion of the scheme in October 2024, the government introduced the Ayushman Bharat Vay Vandana, extending the insurance coverage to all senior citizens above 70 years.
The insurance covers consultations, hospitalisations and specialised treatment for a wide range of conditions, including cancer and heart diseases.
Empanelled public and private hospitals offer this insurance scheme. About 40,000 claims are processed daily for more than 1,900 treatment packages.
AB-PMJAY is available across the country, and has become a cornerstone of healthcare equity for lower-income people and senior citizens:
Ayushman App
One-stop hub for PM-JAY beneficiaries – Available on both Android and iOS in 19 regional languages. Beneficiaries can:
A Second Chance at Life
Soni Kahtoon, wife of a daily wage worker from Motihari, Bihar, suffered from a heart valve condition for years while her family struggled financially. Her husband borrowed Rs. 2.5 lakh for treatment at a private hospital in Bihar, which brought no relief. Under AB-PMJAY, she received free heart valve replacement surgery at a multi-specialty hospital in Lucknow. She recovered and returned home to her children. Ayushman Bharat saved Soni and her family from a lifetime of financial duress.
Pillar 2: Primary Care Through Ayushman Arogya Mandirs (AAM)
The government is scaling primary healthcare infrastructure for less specialised treatment of minor ailments and for public outreach health programmes. Ayushman Arogya Mandirs (AAMs) are being established to provide primary healthcare at every neighbourhood. These AAMs are the cornerstone of community health in India, expanding universal health coverage. They provide comprehensive care spanning preventive, promotive, curative, rehabilitative and palliative care.
Each AAM offers 12 free services, going well beyond maternal and child healthcare. These include the screening and management of diseases, oral, eye and ear-nose-throat care, and mental health support. Teleconsultations, first-level emergency and trauma care, and free essential medicines and diagnostics are also provided at these centres. The AAMs have recorded a cumulative footfall of over 540 crores as on date. The government is rapidly building this infrastructure. There are now:
AAMs are also centres for community health outreach for Community Health Workers and Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs). At these centres, they spread awareness of health programmes, check in on patients, and keep track of community health.
Improving Public Health at the Grassroot Level
For years, the Lalmati sub-centre in Assam's Bongaigaon district served over 10,000 people across 10 villages, providing only basic maternal and child health services. When the centre was upgraded to an AAM through the Ayushman Bharat scheme, it was truly transformed. The AAM expanded its services, adding screening of non-communicable diseases, mental health support, oral and eye care, and emergency services. Trained Community Health Officers were deployed to lead the team delivering these services.
Due to these changes, the area has recorded zero maternal and child mortality from preventable causes since 2024. High-risk pregnancies have more than halved. Cases of communicable diseases and anaemia have also declined.
Pillar 3: Pandemic Preparedness Through PM-ABHIM
Primary healthcare centres also play a pivotal role during public health emergencies, as seen during COVID-19. They become centres for disease surveillance, screening and treatment. The government has been significantly expanding the primary healthcare infrastructure to ensure pandemic preparedness.
Launched on October 25, 2021, the Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM) is one of India’s largest pan-national programmes aimed at developing a resilient, accessible, and self-reliant public health system. Its total financial outlay is Rs. 64,180 crores, spanning from financial years 2021–22 to 2025–26.
The mission is building capacity at every tier of the health system and is:
Beyond physical infrastructure, PM-ABHIM is also building India's pandemic defence architecture. This includes:
Pillar 4: Digital Health Ecosystem Through Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM)
A robust digital health infrastructure is as crucial for improving healthcare accessibility as brick-and-mortar infrastructure. At its core, it gives citizens ownership of their own health data — making it portable, accessible, and usable across any provider in the country. It creates a single source of truth for health facilities, professionals, and pharmacies, enabling better clinical decisions and continuity of care. It also creates a national database that the government can use to analyse public health trends, support medical research, and take a more targeted approach to interventions.
The fourth pillar, the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM), is focused on building a comprehensive, citizen-centric digital infrastructure. It was launched in September 2021. At the heart of ABDM is the Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA) — a unique 14-digit health identity number to which a citizen's complete health records are linked. With the citizen's consent, these records can be accessed by any healthcare professional across the ABDM network, enabling paperless, seamless care. ABDM also facilitates evidence-based decision-making for more effective health interventions at a population level.
The ABHA app, run by the National Health Authority, has a QR-based appointment registration service, which helps with long queues at hospitals or clinics. It also helps verify patient data. The app is leading the expansion of ABDM:
National Health Mission: Targeting Myriad Ailments and Diseases
The NHM with its two sub-missions — National Rural Health Mission and National Urban Health Mission — delivers targeted programmes that address specific diseases, populations, and health challenges.
NHM has improved public health outcomes across maternal and child health, disease elimination and immunisation.
Central to the NHM are community health workersoperating from the primary healthcare centres. Due to the rapid expansion and upgradation of the primary healthcare infrastructure through Ayushman Bharat, these health workers are more capable than ever. They deliver healthcare services to more people, in more places, with better tools and data than before. Their work spans several targeted programme areas — beginning with maternal and child healthcare.
Maternal and Child Healthcare under National Health Mission
Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matritva Abhiyan (PMSMA): Launched in 2016, this scheme provides free and quality antenatal check-ups at government health facilities. Crores of women have benefitted from this scheme:
Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY): This scheme supports women through childbirth. It encourages facility-based deliveries among poor pregnant women, particularly those from below-poverty-line households, and the scheduled caste and scheduled tribe communities.
Janani Shishu Suraksha Karyakram (JSSK): This scheme entitles every pregnant woman at a public facility to government-funded free delivery, drugs, diagnostics, diet, and transport. There is no out-of-pocket cost. In 2014, the JSSK was extended to all antenatal & post-natal complications of pregnancy.
These programmes together have significantly reduced maternal mortality rates.
Community Health Workers Ensure Safe Institutional Births
The pregnancy of Mubashira (of Malappuram, Kerala) was identified as high-risk at Panakkad Urban Family Health Centre. Thereafter, ASHA workers conducted monthly home visits throughout her pregnancy. They monitored both maternal and foetal health. They provided antenatal care and vaccined Mubashira (tetanus and adult diphtheria vaccination). The local police station was also informed at the outset. Regular phone conversations helped build trust with the family. Due to the community outreach, Mubashira safely delivered the baby girl at a hospital.
The NHM runs several other schemes to take care of mothers and children. These include:
Maternal Health
Child Health
Nutrition and Adolescent Health
Mission Indradhanush
Vaccination of newborns and pregnant mothers is crucial to ensure their health and longevity. The government runs the Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP), which targets 2.67 crore newborns and 2.9 crore pregnant women annually — offering free vaccines against 12 diseases.
Despite this programme, many children and pregnant women are not or partially vaccinated. In 2014, the government launched Mission Indradhanush as a catch-up programme for such communities with low vaccination rates.
Through Mission Indradhanush:
Across routine immunisation, over 95 per cent of children aged 12–23 months received their vaccinations at a public health facility in 2023–24, according to the National Health Family Survey (2023-2024).
Together, these efforts have significantly improved vaccination coverage nationwide.
The share of zero-dose children — those who have received no vaccines at all — fell from 0.11 per cent of the population in 2023 to 0.06 per cent in 2024.
India's immunisation programmes have also contributed to the elimination of maternal and neonatal tetanus, as certified by the World Health Organisation in May 2015.
U-WIN
To strengthen timely vaccination of children and pregnant women, the Government launched the U-WIN (Universal Immunisation Web-enabled Network) platform for a pan-India rollout in 2024. U-WIN digitally records every vaccination event, tracks due doses, and ensures permanent, portable health records for beneficiaries. It reduced gaps caused by missed or untracked vaccinations.
The government also launched a three-month cervical cancer prevention campaign in February 2026. The campaign provided free human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine to girls aged 14 years across the country, which number about 1.15 crore.
Beyond protecting mothers, children and young girls, NHM's programmes have also driven significant progress in eliminating communicable diseases that have long burdened India’s public health system.
Eliminating Communicable Diseases
The government has reduced the prevalence of communicable diseases over the past 12 years. NHM's targeted programmes for disease elimination and treatment have delivered measurable outcomes across tuberculosis, malaria, and leprosy.
Tuberculosis
India has reduced tuberculosis (TB) incidence through the National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme (NTEP). The goal of the programme is to eliminate tuberculosis. This programme is multifaceted and includes screening and treatment of TB through government facilities.
Due to the programme, TB cases and fatalities have declined faster than the global rate of decline. A strong community support network established through the programme also helped in combating TB.
Pradhan Mantri TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan: Launched in September 2022, the Pradhan Mantri TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan is the community-led component of the National TB Elimination Programme (NTEP). It transformed TB elimination into a Jan Andolan — a people's movement.
This large-scale screening helped identify previously undetected TB cases circulating silently within communities.
Malaria
India, once among the highest malaria-burden countries globally, has significantly reduced cases and deaths since 2017 through sustained and targeted government interventions via the NHM.
In 2016, the government launched the National Framework for Malaria Elimination, which provides a roadmap for eliminating malaria by 2027. Building on this framework, the National Strategic Plan for Malaria Elimination (2023–2027) introduced enhanced surveillance and a "test, treat, and track" approach to case management. It also developed real-time data tracking. These interventions have contributed to a sustained decline in both malaria cases and deaths across India.
Other Communicable Diseases
NHM's targeted programmes have driven measurable progress even beyond TB and malaria — reducing transmission, cutting fatality rates, and pushing several diseases towards elimination.
Diseases
Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) — heart disease, diabetes, cancer, stroke — account for 60% of all deaths in India. To address this growing burden, NHM's National Programme for Prevention and Control of NCDs (NP-NCD) has been strengthening infrastructure for early detection, diagnosis, and treatment.
Early Detection and Screening
Ayushman Arogya Mandirs (AAMs) function as the cornerstone for community screenings of NCDs, including cancer. The government also runs various clinics and care centres for cancer screenings, diagnosis and management of the diseases.
Treatment and Care
Cancer Care
The government has made cancer treatment a priority over the past 12 years. It is expanding cancer care from district to tertiary levels.
Kidney Disease and Dialysis
NCDs can also trigger secondary conditions. Chronic kidney disease, for instance, can occur due to uncontrolled diabetes, high blood pressure, and other causes. End-Stage Renal Disease is the final and most severe stage of chronic kidney disease. Dialysis, its primary treatment, is expensive.
To support patients of the disease, the government rolled out the Pradhan Mantri National Dialysis Programme (PMNDP) in 2016, which provides free dialysis treatment to the poor.
Through this programme:
Many treatments for NCDs are also covered under the AB-PMJAY insurance scheme, providing poorer sections of society an affordable means of recovery.
Prevention: Reducing NCD Risk Factors
A sedentary and unhealthy lifestyle is often a leading cause for NCDs, particularly for obesity and diabetes. Since 2014, the government has launched several initiatives outside the NHM to combat NCDs and promote a healthy lifestyle.
Eat Right India
A healthy diet is key to combating or preventing obesity, diabetes, under-nutrition and micronutrient deficiencies. Launched in July 2018, the Eat Right India movement promotes safe, healthy, and sustainable food. It promotes hygiene at food establishments, healthy eating practices, and food free from contaminants. The initiative takes a whole-of-government approach – cutting across ministries and departments to deliver coordinated outcomes. The initiative has involved the community in influencing change in people’s diets and lifestyle practices. Through this programme:
Fit India
Engaging in physical activity is also an important way of combating NCDs. Launched in 2019, the Fit India Movement encourages people to incorporate fitness into their daily routines. The Fit India Sundays on Cyclecampaign promotes cycling in urban spaces as a simple, accessible, and eco-friendly way to stay active.
Tobacco Control
Tobacco use continues to be a major public health challenge, claiming over 13 lakh lives annually in India. Tobacco use is also a leading cause of cancer.
Through the National Tobacco Control Programme, India has achieved a 17.3% reduction in overall tobacco use over the past decade.
Tobacco use among school-going children declined too:
Various initiatives under the NTCP helped communities kick off tobacco addition.
India received the Bloomberg Philanthropies Award in 2025 for tobacco control. The award recognised the government's progress in curbing tobacco use through a national toll-free quit line and cessation support services at health facilities across the country.
Preventing disease is only one part of building a healthy society. When illness does occur, access to treatment should depend on need—not on a person’s ability to pay.
Providing Affordable Medicines and Emergency Transport
Healthcare becomes truly accessible and equitable when people can afford the medicines, tests, and transport that treatment requires. Three government initiatives have directly addressed and solved these problems.
The Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana provides quality-assured generic medicines atsignificantly lower prices than market prices. These medicines are available for purchase at Jan Aushadhi Kendras (JAKs) across the country. This initiative has made quality generic medicines available at a fraction of branded prices — typically 50–80% cheaper.
The AMRIT (Affordable Medicines and Reliable Implants for Treatment) Pharmacies initiative was launched in 2015. These pharmacies provide life-saving and essential medicines at discounts ranging from 50% to 90%. They have brought down treatment costs for patients, especially for those from low-income backgrounds.
The government launched the Free Essential Diagnostics Initiative in 2015, under the National Health Mission to address the high out of pocket expenditure on diagnostics. The initiative prescribes free essential tests at every level of the public health system:
The initiative covers:
The specialities covered are:
Free Diagnostics Initiative
Andhra Pradesh was the first state to implement the Free Diagnostics Initiative in 2016. Before, patients in the state paid out-of-pocket for basic lab tests and radiology at public facilities. The state government launched the NTR Vaidya Pariksha initiative across all 13 districts to implement the Free Diagnostics Initiative in government facilities. Free lab and radiology services were extended to:
Tele-radiology was introduced at 120 facilities lacking qualified radiologists. Four new CT centres were set up on Public-Private-Partnership mode. The response was immediate:
The model was designed for replication across other states under NHM.
Emergency transport is also provided by the government.Over the past 12 years, the government has systematically closed the gap between a patient and a hospital by expanding India’s primary emergency ambulance network.
Dial 108 and Dial 102 operate across 35 states and union territories. Dial 108 handles medical emergencies like critical care, trauma, and accident emergencies. Dial 102 focuses on pregnant women and children, managing the beneficiaries of the Janani Shishu Suraksha Karyakram (JSSK) scheme end-to-end. Various emergency support vehicles are closing the gap:
Reaching People Where They Are: Digital and Last-Mile Health Services
Since 2014, the government has expanded last-mile healthcare delivery through digital health technology. Geography is no longer a barrier between people and their health. A patient in a remote village earlier had little hope of seeing a specialist. Now, they can virtually consult them. Three platforms have been central to this effort.
eSanjeevani: National Telemedicine Service
eSanjeevani, India's national telemedicine platform, is at the centre of this digital shift. Citizens living in underserved or remote areas can now consult a doctor via smartphones, computers or at the nearest primary and sub-health centres.
Launched in November 2019, eSanjeevani was initially designed for doctors at health centres to consult one another. However, demand for the platform exploded once the pandemic barred people from visiting hospitals and clinics.
Now, the platform connects people directly to specialists sitting in top medical institutes of the country.
Since its launch:
Tele-MANAS: Mental Health on the Phone
For those seeking mental health care, there exists the Tele-MANAS telemedicine service launched by the government in October 2022. It makes mental healthcare — historically stigmatised and under-resourced — accessible to those living outside cities, where such care has long been concentrated. The service improves access to quality mental health counselling and care services across thecountry.
The service is available in 20 languages across all 36 states and union territories. People can get telephone-based counselling, psychotherapy, psychiatric consultations, and referral services, including urgent care through Tele-MANAS.
In October 2024, the government launched the Tele-MANAS mobile app, which made the use of the service easier. The app also makes services accessible to the visually impaired. This is through a specially designed, user-friendly digital interface and a toll-free phone line that does not require screen use. The use of the telemedicine service was boosted since the launch of the app.
i-DRONE for Medicine Delivery
Medicine delivery is often difficult in remote and hilly regions, or difficult terrain. Drones are now being used to deliver medicines to those who cannot get them due to physical or other barriers. The Indian Council of Medical Research launched the i-DRONE service in 2021. These drones are used to transport medicines, vaccines and blood samples for testing via drones.
Transforming Healthcare Delivery Through Artificial Intelligence
The government is deploying artificial intelligence across healthcare to further increase equity, accessibility, affordability and speed.
AI-powered Clinical Decision Support Systems (CDSS)assists doctors during eSanjeevani consultations through structured data capture and clinical alerts.
AI tools are also strengthening disease screening. The ‘Cough Against TB’ tool uses cough analysis to identify likely tuberculosis cases.
MadhuNetrAI enables automated diabetic retinopathy screening, helping prevent avoidable blindness. It eliminates the need for a specialist ophthalmologist at the point of screening.
Medical Education and Workforce
Over the past 12 years, the government has expanded medical education to meet rising demand for health professionals.
Nursing has received equal attention:
Alternative Healthcare
Alongside modern medicine, the government has also formally integrated traditional healthcare systems into the public health framework since 2014.
The Ministry of AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga, and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy), formed in November 2014, established traditional medicine as an active part of India's health system.
The National AYUSH Mission co-locates AYUSH facilities at public health centres and district hospitals. Traditional care now shares infrastructure with modern medicine.
To unify the traditional healthcare ecosystem, the AYUSH Grid will digitally connect all AYUSH hospitals and laboratories nationwide.
India is also positioning AYUSH as a global offering. A dedicated AYUSH Visa was introduced in July 2023, for foreign nationals seeking treatment in India. This has significantly expanded the country’s potential to become the world’s health and wellness capital.
Towards a Viksit Bharat 2047
During the past 12 years, investments in medical infrastructure, primary healthcare, and medical education have strengthened India’s health sector. These efforts are steadily advancing the country towards universal health coverage. It is the fulfilment, in practice, of the government’s motto — Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas.
A healthier population is not only a moral achievement — it is an economic one. When people are not pushed into poverty by medical bills, they spend more on their development. When workers are not lost to preventable disease, they are more productive at work. When children survive their first years and grow up well-nourished, they learn, earn, and contribute.
The benefits over the past 12 years will compound across generations. Children born today into a system with near-universal immunisation coverage, accessible primary care, and early disease screening will live longer, healthier lives than their parents. They will also inherit a stronger health baseline in turn. India is moving steadily towards its vision of Viksit Bharat @ 2047 — a healthier, stronger, and more prosperous nation for every citizen.
