Ayushman Bharat to Roll Out in Delhi Soon: 6.5 Lakh Families to Benefit

New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu): The Delhi government is set to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the National Health Authority (NHA) over the weekend to roll out the Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) in the capital. The flagship scheme of the Narendra Modi government, hailed as the world’s largest public health insurance initiative, provides an annual health cover of ₹5 lakh per family for secondary and tertiary healthcare in both government and private hospitals.

Under the new arrangement, Delhi residents will receive a total health cover of ₹10 lakh, with ₹5 lakh funded by the Centre and an additional ₹5 lakh provided by the Delhi government. This move aims to benefit around 6.54 lakh families from the economically weaker sections, along with 4.5 lakh senior citizen families.

According to officials, the first step towards implementing the scheme is the formation of the State Health Agency (SHA), which will oversee the daily operations of AB-PMJAY in Delhi. Master trainers are currently undergoing training to facilitate the registration process, and the government aims to enroll at least 1 lakh eligible beneficiaries within the next 30 days.

Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, in her first cabinet meeting on Thursday, announced the government’s commitment to providing additional health coverage under the scheme. The MoU signing is expected to take place by the end of the week, marking a major milestone in bringing universal healthcare to Delhi’s most vulnerable residents.