Bangalore: Indian Health Minister Gulam Nabi Azad yesterday launched the National Urban Health Mission (NUHM) here to provide health security to the urban poor, amounting to about 200 crore people.
“The mission envisages setting up health check-up infrastructure and create manpower for the welfare of the poor dwelling in cities and towns on the lines of the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM),” he said on the occasion.
The central government will bear 80 percent of the cost of implementing the programme in 779 urban areas with over 50,000 population across the country by 2015.
“Primary health centres, sub-centres, referral units will be strengthened in urban areas and manned by auxiliary nurse midwifes (ANMs). Mobile health check-up vans will visit these centres with two doctors, two nurses and a pharmacist,” Azad said.
About 200 million people in urban areas will have access to free healthcare.
Lauding the initiative, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said focus should be on creating awareness towards prevention than cure. “Urban rich have access to healthcare facilities but for the urban poor, medical expense is beyond their means, as 17 percent of them live in slums and majority of them are migrant labourers, rag pickers and marginalised sections of society,” he noted.
IANS
