PM Modi Launches Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission In Varanasi

Varanasi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday (October 25) launched PM Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission and Release of Operation al Guidelines in Uttar Pradesh’s Varanasi. PM Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission will be one of the largest pan-India schemes for strengthening healthcare infrastructure across the country. It will be in addition to the National Health Mission, according to PMO. The objective of PM Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission is to fill critical gaps in public health infrastructure, especially in critical care facilities and primary care in both urban and rural areas.

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It will provide support for 17,788 rural Health and Wellness Centres in 10 High Focus States. Further, 11,024 urban Health and Wellness Centres will be established in all the States. Critical care services will be available in all the districts of the country with more than 5 lakh population, through Exclusive Critical Care Hospital Blocks, while the remaining districts will be covered through referral services, it said.

People will have access to a full range of diagnostic services in the Public Healthcare system through a network of laboratories across the country. Integrated Public Health Labs will be set up in all the districts.

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Under PM Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission, a National Institution for One Health, 4 New National Institutes for Virology, a Regional Research Platform for WHO South-East Asia Region, 9 Biosafety Level III laboratories, 5 New Regional National Centre for Disease Control will be set up.

PM Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission targets to build an IT enabled disease surveillance system by developing a network of surveillance laboratories at block, district, regional and national levels, in Metropolitan areas. Integrated Health Information Portal will be expanded to all States/UTs to connect all public health labs.

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PM Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission also aims at the Operationalisation of 17 new Public Health Units and strengthening 33 existing Public Health Units at Points of Entry, for effectively detecting, investigating, preventing, and combating Public Health Emergencies and Disease Outbreaks. It will also work towards building up a trained frontline health workforce to respond to any public health emergency.

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(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 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 – the LGBTQ 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 current COVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) 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, fight malnutrition, 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,  that 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 like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene. Banega Swasth India will also be taking forward the dream of Swasth Bharat, the campaign feels that only a Swachh or clean India where toilets are used and open defecation free (ODF) status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and the country can become a Swasth or healthy India.