Spend more on health infrastructure: Nadda to states
New Delhi, Aug 5: Health Minister J P Nadda on Monday urged state governments to spend more on improving healthcare infrastructure and dismissed opposition allegations on reduction of allocations under the PM-Ayushman Bharat Healthcare Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM).
Replying to the debate on the demand for grants for the health and family welfare ministry in the Lok Sabha, Nadda listed the increase in number of medical colleges, steps taken for the reduction of out-of-pocket expenses on healthcare and initiatives for early screening of diseases such as cancer and sickle cell anaemia as achievements of the government.
"We don't believe in just making announcements. We believe in effective planning, ensuring last mile delivery, identifying bottlenecks in last mile delivery and taking steps to remove them," the minister said.
Nadda dared Trinamool Congress members, who were protesting, to tell the House why the West Bengal government had not shared the dengue registry with the Centre.
On opposition claims on reduction of funds for the health infrastructure mission, the health minister said states were able to spend just Rs 1,806 crore out of the budgetary allocation of Rs 4,200 crore in last year's budget.
"We are giving money, but it is not spent. You spend the money, we will allocate more funds if the existing funds are spent," Nadda said, adding that Rs 3,200 crore have been earmarked for PM-ABHIM this year.
Nadda said the Modi government has placed healthcare as a priority sector in the allocation made in the Union Budget.
"The health policy released in 2017 had set a target of 2.5 per cent of GDP for the healthcare sector by 2025. In this year’s budget the allocation for the health sector is 1.9 per cent of the GDP and we are on track of achieving the target," the health minister said.
Nadda said that in 2013-14, the budget for the health sector was Rs 33,278 crore, and today it stood at Rs 90,958 crore, which is an increase of 164 per cent.
He also mentioned that local governments have allocated an additional Rs 71,051 crore, as suggested by the 15th Finance Commission report.
"The National Health Mission (NHM) ensures that state governments strengthen their health infrastructure and logistics, with Rs 55 crore allocated from the total health budget," Nadda added.
He said that under the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY), Rs 13,900 crore has been spent to strengthen tertiary healthcare.
On concerns voiced by the opposition on out-of-pocket expenditure, Nadda said the Modi government has succeeded in reducing it from 62 per cent to 41 per cent by strengthening Ayushman Bharat initiatives, making available free drugs and diagnostic facilities, and free screening.
The minister said the government has now approved 22 AIIMS spread across the country, of which 18 were operational and four were under construction.
He said the opposition should appreciate the achievements of Prime Minister Narendra Modi who has ensured upgradation of 157 medical colleges.
Nadda said the number of medical colleges too have increased from 387 earlier to 731 at present. According to the minister the undergraduate seats have increased from 51,348 to 1,12,112, an increase by 118 per cent.
The minister said the number of post-graduate seats too have increased from 31,185 earlier to 72,627 at present, an increase of 113 per cent.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Duleep Trophy: Pacers shine as India B beat India A by 76 runs
Bengaluru, Sep 8: KL Rahul's gumption, which helped him pile a patient fifty, found no resonance among his colleagues as India B pacers led by Yash Dayal pushed India A to a 76-run defeat on the fourth and final day of their Duleep Trophy match here on Sunday.
Chasing 275, India A were bundled out for 198 in their second innings as left-arm seamer Dayal (3/50), with able support from his colleagues Mukesh Kumar (2/50) and Navdeep Saini (2/41), led the India B attack.
Rahul top-scored for 'A' with a 51.
In the first session of the day, India B made 184 all out in their second essay to muster a handy overall lead of 274.
The India A chase began on a shaky note as Mayank Agarwal departed in the second over itself, wafting Dayal away from his body to Nitish Kumar Reddy, who made a wonderful diving catch at second slip.
That brought Riyan Parag to the middle and the right-hander followed the path set on Saturday by Rishabh Pant and Sarfaraz Khan.
Parag took on the bowlers and pacer Mukesh bore the brunt of his aggression, getting smoked for two sixes and the second maximum touched the roof of the Chinnaswamy Stadium over the mid-wicket region.
Parag added 48 runs for the second with a rather subdued Shubman Gill, who was dropped by Nitish Reddy at slips off Mukesh on 16, and 31 came off the former's bat in just 18 balls.
But the approach was tough to sustain considering the kind of assistance the bowlers were getting here, and soon his massive hoick off Dayal took an edge off Parag's bat en route to stumper Rishabh Pant.
Gill (21) departed soon, falling to Saini for the second time in the match and on this occasion, he edged the pacer to Pant.
Dhruv Jurel poked Dayal well outside off-stump to Yashasvi Jaiswal at gully, as India batters perished to a combination of bowlers' persistence on that channel and their own carelessness.
They took the lunch at a queasy 76 for four that soon transpired into 99 for six after the dismissal of Shivam Dube and Tanush Kotian, an hour into the lunch.
However, Rahul batted out 180 minutes 121 balls and milked 42 runs for the seventh wicket with Kuldeep Yadav to delay the inevitable.
The standout shot in an otherwise dour innings was a whistling on drive off Mukesh that fetched him a boundary.
But Mukesh had his revenge soon when Rahul feathered a cut off him to Pant, who completed five catches in this innings, soon after reaching his fifty with a single off Saini.
It effectively signalled the end of the road of for India A, though Akash Deep (43, 42b, 3x4, 4x6) gave a few moments of fun with a cavalier innings.
But beyond the entertainment value, it always was a case of when more than if.
Earlier, resuming from their overnight score of 150 for six India B could only 34 runs more to the total before getting bundled out.
Pacer Akash, whom Sarfaraz Khan carted around for five fours in a row the previous day, found his mojo to add the scalps of Washington Sundar and Saini to complete a five-wicket haul (5/56).
The spell will keep his name floating among the contenders when the selectors sit together soon to pick up squad for two-match Test series against Bangladesh.
