Aam Aadmi clinics: Centre warns Punjab of blocking funds over bid to rebrand

The Union health ministry has threatened Punjab to stop the release of over Rs 200 crore health funds under the National Health Mission accusing the Aam Aadmi party-led government in the state of rebranding the centrally funded Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres as Aam Aadmi clinics.

Such a re-branding, according to a ministry official, is a clear violation of the rules guiding the Ayushman Bharat – Health and Wellness Centre programme, one of the two components of the flagship scheme.

In a February 6 letter to the state government, an official said Punjab had “vitiated the spirit of the scheme” and “defaulted” on its commitment by branding AB-HWCs as Aam Aadmi Clinics and “not adhering’ to the provisions of the memorandum on the implementation of the scheme. The letter was released on Tuesday.

For Punjab an allocation of Rs 1,114.57 crore was made in 2022-23 with a 60:40 contribution between the central and state governments. This means the central government would provide Rs 669 crore while the rest would come from the state kitty. The Union government has released Rs 438 crore so far before flagging the rebranding controversy.

The ministry claimed that the Punjab government led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann neither properly coloured the building and put up the display as per the established protocol nor adhered to the health programmes that are to be implemented through the health and wellness centres.

“The state has violated the provisions of the Memorandum of Understanding (signed between Centre and Punjab government) and has stopped implementing the AB-HWC component of the National Health Mission. Therefore releases to the state under NHM do not appear feasible as per provisions of the MoU,” NHM Additional Secretary and Mission Director Roli Singh wrote in the letter.

Ministry officials said more than 3,000 sub-centres, primary health centres and urban health centres were converted into Aam Aadmi clinics in Punjab.

Punjab, however, was not alone in such violations. Telangana too partially deviated from implementing the scheme, following which the ministry has sought corrections.

Five years ago, the Narendra Modi government decided to convert more than 1.5 lakh health sub-centres into Ayushman Bharat health and wellness centres that are to deliver 12 types of basic healthcare services ranging from mother and child care to basic ophthalmic and ENT care as well as basic management of mental health care.