KOLKATA: Chief minister Suvendu Adhikari on Saturday announced the rollout of Centre’s flagship health insurance scheme Ayushman Bharat in Bengal from July with more than 6 crore residents who were previously enrolled in the state’s Swasthya Sathi programme within its ambit. Enrolment under Ayushman Bharat has already begun and beneficiaries will start receiving their cards by July, he said.“We expect that more than 6 crore Swasthya Sathi cardholders can immediately be brought under Ayushman Bharat. More people will be able to join the scheme in phases,” Adhikari said, adding that nearly one crore Bengal residents living in other states will also receive Ayushman benefits. He, however, did not specify how the transition of beneficiaries from Swasthya Sathi to Ayushman Bharat will take place. The agreement for Ayushman Arogya Mandir will be signed in Delhi within the first week of June, he said.Adhikari, who was speaking at Nabanna after a virtual meeting with Union health minister JP Nadda, said the Centre has sanctioned a financial package of Rs 3,000 crore to revamp the state’s ailing healthcare infrastructure, of which the first instalment of Rs 500 crore has already been credited. Of this package, Rs 2,103 crore has been sanctioned under National Health Mission and Rs 976 crore to implement Ayushman Bharat. At least 469 more Pradhan Mantri Jan Aushadhi Kendras will also be set up to provide medicines, including those for critical illnesses, at discounts of up to 80%.Stating that the govt is preparing a roadmap for the state’s healthcare sector, the CM said, “The earlier govt neither cooperated with the Centre nor allowed people to avail benefits that other states receive. As a result, crores of people in Bengal were deprived. There was no communication or exchange of letters among administrators, bureaucrats, doctors or those responsible for the health sector. A severe negativity was at play, the adverse effects of which are visible everywhere.”Adhikari said the govt will also take steps to ensure that every district in the state has a medical college. At present, four districts — Alipurduar, Kalimpong, West Burdwan and South Dinajpur — do not have medical colleges. “Proposals to set up medical colleges in these four districts will be sent to Centre soon and steps will be taken to set up an AIIMS in North Bengal,” he said.In another significant announcement, the CM said the state will launch cervical cancer vaccination from May 30. Although the Union govt introduced the programme nationally in Feb, it is yet to be implemented in Bengal. “Centre is ready to provide more than seven lakh doses for girls aged between 14 and 15 years in the state,” he said.Expressing concern over Bengal’s child mortality figures, the CM said, “Due to inadequate monitoring by the previous govt, mortality rate for newborns to under-five is significantly high, especially in districts like Kolkata, Murshidabad, East Burdwan, Birbhum and Malda.” He also added that Bengal’s standing in National Leprosy Eradication Program is not high as it has seven districts — Birbhum, Bankura, Jhargram, Kolkata, West Burdwan, Purulia, and North Dinajpur — with rates much higher than the national average.The CM also criticised the low manpower in Bengal’s health sector. “We aim to bring transparency to the recruitment policy within the next three months. Even in projects with central funding or those with a central share, recruitment has only been 53% against sanctioned post till now,” he added.
