Parl panel asks Centre to decentralise PMJAY to address accessibility gaps

Panel recommends strengthening existing school and college-based health education programmes on nutrition, fitness, and mental well-being

Noting the role of the Ayushman Bharat–Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) in expanding affordable healthcare coverage, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance recommended that the Centre adopt a decentralised approach to address accessibility gaps through technology.

 

“Health services under the AB-PMJAY should be decentralised via mobile health units and telemedicine hubs, particularly in the tribal and hilly regions, to deepen its impact and address gaps in reach and accessibility,” the panel’s report titled A Roadmap for Indian Economic Growth in Light of Global Economic and Geopolitical Circumstances stated.

 

The Centre’s flagship healthcare scheme aims at providing health cover of ₹5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation to approximately 550 million beneficiaries, corresponding to 123.7 million families, which constitute the economically vulnerable bottom 40 per cent of India’s population.

 

Till date, 419.7 million Ayushman cards have been created across 27 states and eight Union Territories, according to data from the PMJAY dashboard.

 

“The committee notes the strides in expanding affordable healthcare and health coverage under the National Health Mission (NHM), such as operationalisation of Ayushman Arogya Mandirs, National Ambulance Services, and the Universal Immunisation Programme,” the report stated.

 

More than 178,000 Ayushman Arogya Mandirs (AAMs), or health and wellness centres, are operational nationwide as of August 2025, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

 

However, to ensure the health–employment linkage, the committee recommended strategic strengthening and universalisation of existing school and college-based health education programmes on nutrition, fitness, and mental well-being under the Fit India and Eat Right campaigns.