President of India launches ‘Ayushman Bhav’ Campaign

SRINAGAR: President of India, Droupadi Murmu at wednesday launched the ‘Ayushman Bhav’ Campaign and the ‘Ayushman Bhav’ portal.

Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha attended the launch ceremony, virtually, from Raj Bhawan.

The event was followed by a UT-level programme organized by the J&K Administration. The Lt Governor expressed his gratitude to the President of India for the launch of the nationwide campaign which aims to saturate critical health care services in every village.

The guidance of the President will motivate stakeholders to achieve the target of Health for All, he added.

He said the three components of Ayushman Bhav campaign – Ayushman Apke Dwar, Ayushman Melas at Health & Wellness Centres, Community Health Centres and Ayushman Sabhas will enhance awareness and saturate health schemes in urban and rural areas.

At the programme, the Lt Governor talked about the unprecedented progress registered by the country in health sector over the last few years.

Despite the challenges of Covid, Conflict and Climate Change, India has achieved several milestones in health parameters for all the citizens. The reflection of the country’s achievements is also visible in the transformation taking place in the health sector of UT of Jammu Kashmir, he said.

“My first duty and highest obligation is the health of the common man”, the Lt Governor said.

He observed that the most valuable investment is to ensure Health for All. The Administration is making earnest efforts to provide accessible, affordable and quality healthcare to every citizen, he added.

We have developed robust public health infrastructure in J&K and Universal Health Insurance Coverage, Digital health services have ensured an improved public health delivery system, the Lt Governor said.

He said the use of modern technology has positively impacted diagnosis, treatment and patient monitoring systems.

The Lt Governor called upon the health officials and all stakeholders to actively participate in the Ayushman Bhav Campaign and the upcoming Seva Pakhwada.

He directed for convergence of the campaign with the celebration of Gandhi Jayanti and to promote the values of selfless service towards the people, especially the needy, poor and marginalized sections of the society. Swachhta Abhiyan should be carried out at Health Facilities across the UT, he added.

On the occasion, the Lt Governor awarded Shopian, Pulwama, Ganderbal, Anantnag, Kathua, and Pulwama as best performing districts in ABHA ID generation, Golden Cards creation & distribution, NCD screening, examination & Diagnosis, registration in Ni-kshay mitras and distribution of Kits to TB patients, respectively. He honoured the Aarafah Food and Spices for adopting TB patients.

The Lt Governor also distributed Nutrition Kits to TB patients and urged the people and the community leaders to register themselves as Ni-Kshay Mitras.

Several events were organized at various levels across the UT to mark the launch of the Ayushman Bhav campaign and more than 1.22 lakh people, including ULB & PRI members from J&K were connected during the programme.

Ayushman Apke Dwar 3.0 aims to provide Ayushman cards to remaining eligible beneficiaries enrolled under the PM-JAY scheme, ensuring that more individuals have access to essential health services.

Ayushman Melas at HWCs and CHCs will facilitate the creation of ABHA IDs (Health IDs) and issuance of Ayushman Bharat Cards. They will also offer early diagnosis, comprehensive primary health care services, tele-consultation with specialists, and appropriate referrals. The above activities will start from 17th September and will continue till 31st December 2023.

Rajeev Rai Bhatnagar, Advisor to Lt Governor; Dr Arun Kumar Mehta, Chief Secretary; Dr Mandeep Kumar Bhandari, Principal Secretary to Lt Governor; Bhupinder Kumar, Secretary Health and Medical Education and other senior officers were present at Raj Bhawan.