Finding lapses in the branding of buildings run under the Narendra Modi government’s Ayushman Bharat scheme, the Centre has warned Punjab to adhere to the contractual provisions.
The central government has lashed out at the Bhagwant Mann government for branding the buildings of health and wellness centres under the Ayushman Bharat scheme as “Aam Aadmi clinics”.
Despite receiving the promised funding, the central government told the state that they have “vitiated the spirit of the scheme of Ayushman Bharat- Health and Wellness centres and defaulted on its commitment”.
According to a letter written by Roli Singh, mission director of National Health Mission — the arm responsible for the execution of Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana in states — on February 6, several reminders have been sent to Punjab’s health department to ensure facade branding of health and wellness centres as per the design manual of NHM.
What letter says
The letter —sent to Veerendra Kumar Meena, principal secretary, department of health and family welfare under the Punjab government — said that “the importance of compliance by all states and union territories to this branding has been reiterated several times in the review meetings…”
It further said that “the state was asked to stop any further deviations of the guidelines and ensure branding as per the guidelines”.
Punjab has also executed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Government of India (Gol) as per the NHM framework which mandates compliance with guidelines issued under the mission by the state.
However, the letter said, it is seen that the state is still not complying with the branding requirements in the case of primary health centres (PHCs)-health and wellness centres (HWCs) in urban and rural areas.
Ayushman Bharat is a flagship scheme launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to achieve the vision of universal health coverage.
As part of the Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY), an eligible family is provided Rs 5 lakh per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation across public and private empanelled hospitals in India.
Deviations found and source of funding
The letter lists the deviations, as well.
For instance, the name of the facility should be Ayushman Bharat-Health and Wellness Centre, whereas in Punjab the name of the premises is Aam Aadmi Clinic.
The colour of the facade should be yellow, but in the case of Punjab, the colour theme is not followed in rural or urban buildings.
In the financial year 2022-23, Punjab has been given approval of Rs. 1114.57 crore under NHM in the ratio of 60:40 (central share: state share).
An amount of Rs 438.46 crore has already been released so far towards the central share for the current year to the state, the letter claims.
Further, it said, the state has been provided with an approval of Rs 401.12 crore and Rs 145.62 crore for the financial year 2022-23.
By not adhering to the provisions of the MoU and not following the guidelines and “developing the branding of these facilities as Aam Aadmi clinics, the State has vitiated the spirit of the scheme of Ayushman Bharat- Health and Wellness centres and defaulted on its commitment,” says the letter.
“It seems that the state has violated the provisions of Clause 1o.3 and 1o.10 of MoU and has stopped implementing the AB-HWC component of NHM, therefore releases to the State under NHM do not appear feasible as per provisions of clause 13 of the MoU,” it warns.
Read all the Latest India News here
Comments
0 comment