Ayushman Bharat enrollment begins in West Bengal, benefits likely from July: CM Suvendu Adhikari
Kolkata, May 23
West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Friday said that enrollment under the Ayushman Bharat scheme has started in the state and beneficiaries are likely to start receiving benefits from July.
Addressing a press conference after a virtual meeting with Union Health Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda, Adhikari said several central health schemes and projects were reviewed during the interaction.
"Today, we had a meeting with Union Health Minister JP Nadda virtually. Several schemes and projects were reviewed in this meeting. The previous government opposed the central government in several ways. The Union Health Minister said that the state government did not share any data related to dengue in 2015, 2016 and 2017. Enrollment for Ayushman Bharat has begun; hopefully, the people will benefit from the month of July," Adhikari said.
The Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) is the Centre's flagship health insurance scheme that provides financial protection for secondary and tertiary healthcare to economically vulnerable families.
On May 20, Adhikari had said that the state government was ready to hand over 27 kilometres of land for fencing along the Indo-Bangladesh border. He had also announced that land would be provided for Border Outposts (BOPs) and Border Security Force (BSF) infrastructure development.
The Chief Minister had accused the previous Trinamool Congress government of delaying and denying land allocation for border fencing, alleging that the lack of cooperation had adversely impacted national security and efforts to curb illegal infiltration.
— ANI
Reader Comments
Good to see progress on healthcare front. However, I hope the state government also focuses on strengthening public hospitals instead of just relying on insurance schemes. Many rural areas in Bengal still lack basic medical facilities. Let's hope this brings real change on ground. 🤞
Interesting how the article mentions both healthcare and border fencing in the same press conference. Seems like the new CM is trying to address multiple neglected issues at once. The previous government's refusal to share dengue data is concerning though - public health transparency is crucial. 🏥
Let's be practical - Ayushman Bharat is good but only if hospitals actually honour the scheme. In other states, many private hospitals refuse treatment saying 'card not valid yet'. Also, infrastructure for border fencing is long overdue; illegal infiltration has been a serious issue in Bengal for decades. No more politics on national security.
The denial of land for border fencing by the previous government raises serious questions about their priorities. National security should never be compromised for political gains. Hopefully, the new administration can fix both healthcare access and border security simultaneously. Two birds with one stone approach seems ambitious but necessary.
The previous TMC government really messed up on multiple fronts - from blocking central healthcare schemes to stalling border fencing. But now we need results, not just promises. I hope enrollment process is simple and doesn't require people to run from pillar to post. Digital literacy is low in rural Bengal, so ground-level help is needed. ✨
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