Trauma centres to get shot in the arm, integrated labs on cards in UP

LUCKNOW Aiming to reduce mortality due to accidents and infective/chronic illnesses, the state budget-2024 on Monday allocated a major amount ( ₹27,086 crore) to the medical health and family welfare department to develop new treatment and training facilities across districts.

According to finance minister Suresh Khanna, trauma centres across UP will be upgraded with a budget of ₹300 crore to provide state-of-the-art treatment facilities to critical patients while new integrated public labs will be started to check spread of disease.

While presenting the budget, Khanna said the state government proposed ₹300 crore for upgrading trauma centres and ₹10 crore for a 500-bed hospital and school of medical research at IIT-Kanpur. A sum of ₹176.55 crore was also proposed for running free ambulance service for injured people and pregnant women.

A new medical college proposed in Varanasi with a grant of ₹400 crore, a paramedical college in Kannauj with a grant of ₹25 crore, another college in Balrampur and a 500-bed hospital building in Ayodhya were among key proposals announced by the finance minister in the budget.

New projects worth over ₹800 crore were proposed for the health sector, apart from other segments. Starting medical colleges under public-private-partnership (PPP) mode was also in focus. The state allocated ₹964 crore for 14 new medical colleges.

“At present, 45 districts are covered with 66 medical colleges under the one-district-one-medical-college scheme of the state government,” he said.

In 2022, 22,595 people lost their lives in road accidents and 28,541 sustained severe injuries, according to NCRB data. Such patients need immediate trauma care. The state government has proposed that trauma centres, which number over 48 at present, will be upgraded to level one (200-bed facilities).

For programmes under the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM), a provision of ₹7,350 crore was proposed. In 2023-24, the state government proposed ₹12,631 crore for NRHM. Under the Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission Yojana, a provision of ₹952 crore was proposed for the establishment of health and wellness centres, integrated public health labs in rural and urban areas, and ₹300 crore was proposed in the financial year for Ayushman Bharat Mukhyamantri Jan Arogya Abhiyan, Khanna said.

An amount of ₹322 crore was also proposed for the Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana in financial year 2024-25.

Arrangements for cashless treatment have been made in private hospitals affiliated to Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Rajya Karmchari Cashless Chikitsa Yojana. An estimated expenditure of ₹150 crore is anticipated for this, which is being borne by the state government, the minister said in the budget speech.

For developing Ayush wing, the state government proposed several new initiatives. The Unani rheumatology treatment and research work will be started in Lucknow and Prayagraj and the state government has proposed a fund of ₹1.5 crore for the same.

Another ₹3 crore was proposed for new Ayurved hospitals in rural areas while ₹1 crore was proposed for improving quality of education in Ayurved. Also, ₹1 crore was proposed for construction in Unanni health centres. For research in homeopathy colleges, a fund of ₹90 lakh was proposed in the state budget.