Centre Will Adopt Uttar Pradesh’s Health Fair Model: Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya

Lucknow: Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Wednesday  (July 26), said that the Centre will emulate Uttar Pradesh model of health fairs across the country. “A health fair is organised every week at every primary health and wellness centre in the state. Two and a half to three lakh poor people are treated at such fairs. We will implement this model in the whole country,” Dr Mandaviya said at a press conference after a meeting with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and officials of the state health department.

The UP government has created a digital platform for vaccination which is very good. It has prepared a portal to get information about the utilisation of operation theatres in all hospitals, we will implement that too at the national level, the Union minister said.

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He said that the UP government is the first among state governments to be using e-rupee in the health sector.

We will implement the e-Rupee scheme in the entire country so that beneficiaries directly get money.

The minister also said though the COVID pandemic has ended in the country, there were still isolated cases and there was still a need to be cautious.

Asked about the possibility of absorbing scientists and technicians temporarily kept during the COVID pandemic and later removed, the minister said,

If the government has to use them, they will be used.

On the shortage of doctors in government hospitals, Mandaviya said seats in medical colleges have been increased but it will take five years before those under training join the workforce.

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The minister said that according to the National Health Policy, by the year 2025, 2.5 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product has to be spent on health services, he said.

He said last year he met officials from some hospitals who suggested to him ways to better link health facilities with the Ayushman Bharat scheme and he has since worked on their suggestions.

If we encourage and enlist good hospitals, then the implementation of the Ayushman Bharat scheme can be done efficiently, he said.

At the same event, Adityanath said that before 2014, state governments used to rush to Delhi only to be ignored, unlike today, when Union ministers are going to the states asking how much funds they need for the implementation of schemes.

The aim of all of us is to provide complete health facilities to the person standing on the last rung, the CM said.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

NDTV – Dettol have been working towards a clean and healthy India since 2014 via the Banega Swachh India initiative, which is helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. The campaign aims to highlight the inter-dependency of humans and the environment, and of humans on one another with the focus on One Health, One Planet, One Future – Leaving No One Behind. It stresses on the need to take care of, and consider, everyone’s health in India – especially vulnerable communities – theLGBTQ population,indigenous people, India’s different tribes, ethnic and linguistic minorities, people with disabilities, migrants, geographically remote populations, gender and sexual minorities. In wake of the currentCOVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water,SanitationandHygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign will continue to raise awareness on the same along with focussing on the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children, fightmalnutrition, mental wellbeing, self care, science and health,adolescent health & gender awareness. Along with the health of people, the campaign has realised the need to also take care of the health of the eco-system. Our environment is fragile due to human activity, which is not only over-exploiting available resources, but also generating immense pollution as a result of using and extracting those resources. The imbalance has also led to immense biodiversity loss that has caused one of the biggest threats to human survival – climate change. It has now been described as a “code red for humanity.” The campaign will continue to cover issues likeair pollution,waste management,plastic ban,manual scavengingand sanitation workers andmenstrual hygiene. Banega Swasth India will also be taking forward the dream of Swasth Bharat, the campaign feels that only a Swachh or clean India wheretoiletsare used andopen defecation free (ODF)status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched byPrime Minister Narendra Modiin 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and the country can become a Swasth or healthy India.