Non-delivery of medical services in rural areas far from truth: JP Nadda

Union Health Minister JP Nadda on Tuesday said the question being asked by members of parliament on non-availability of medical services in rural areas is "far from the truth".

During Question Hour in the Rajya Sabha, the minister said there may be less number of doctors posted on ground in rural areas but the shortage is being addressed by the government by increasing medical seats that will lead to addition of 75,000 new doctors over the next five years and 10,000 this year.

"The question frequently arises that we are unable to serve in rural areas, it is very far from the truth. Our MMR (maternal mortality rate) is double that of global decline. U-WIN tracks every mother who becomes pregnant till the delivery time and when the child becomes two years old and gets all the injections done. Everything is tracked," Nadda said.

He was responding to a question by a Congress MP.

To cite the strength of the medical system, the health minister said 220 crore double doses with booster injections were given during the Covid-19 pandemic across the country even in the remotest part of the country.

"Posting doctors is the responsibility of states. We pay them. If doctors aren't there, then we are running mobile medical units, doing telemedicine consultation," Nadda said.

He said that nine crore screenings have been done for cervical cancer, 5.3 crore people have been screened under the National Sickle Cell Anaemia Elimination Mission and two crore cards have been made.

"If doctors did not go there, medical professionals did not go, then who decided it is not a sickle cell," Nadda said.

He said that the country's health system is robust, be it any state and run by any government.

"Due to this, our robust system can detect the polio virus even in sewage. I admit that there may be eight doctors and there may be four. For this, there has been 131 per cent increase in medical colleges. 75,000 new medical doctors are going to come in the next five years and 10,000 more doctors will be added this year," Nadda said.