"11 District Public Health Labs...could be made": BJP slams Kejriwal for delaying Ayushman Yojana in Delhi

New Delhi [India], January 14 (ANI): Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday strongly criticized Aam Aadmi Party Chief Arvind Kejriwal and the Delhi government for their reluctance to implement key welfare schemes including Ayushman Bharat Yojana in the national capital.
Addressing a press conference, BJP MP Bansuri Swaraj highlighted the Delhi government's refusal to sign an MoU with the Centre for the Ayushman Bharat Yojana, which would have brought significant healthcare infrastructure improvements to Delhi.
"Ayushman Bharat is the world's largest welfare scheme in the health sector. On September 24, 2024, the Delhi High Court issued an order directing the Kejriwal government to sign an MoU with the Centre by January 5. This was crucial because, since 2023, the Centre has been waiting with approximately Rs 2,400 crore, urging the Delhi government to accept the funds and implement the Ayushman Bharat Yojana in Delhi. Under this scheme, 1,139 Urban Health and Wellness Centres, 11 District Public Health Labs, Nine Critical Care Blocks, and an additional 950 hospital beds could be established for Delhi residents," she said.
"When the court inquired yesterday about the progress, the Health Department's lawyer stated that the MoU was ready, but the Delhi government was unwilling to sign it. It is surprising that AAP has filed a Special Leave Petition (SLP) in the Supreme Court against this order," Swaraj added.
BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri said that Delhi CM Atishi and AAP Chief Arvind Kejriwal should reconsider the Ayushman Yojana.
"Earlier, AAP did not implement the Pradhanmantri Awas Yojana in Delhi, which could have provided permanent homes to lakhs of people. 53,000 flats were built for people living in slums, with a 50 percent contribution from the Centre and 50 percent from the Delhi government. Continuously, the Centre wrote letters to Kejriwal, suggesting that flats be allocated to people whose slums were demolished by the PWD, but these flats were left abandoned while Kejriwal stubbornly refused to act. Not a single slum dweller was rehabilitated in these flats," Bidhuri said.
"The Centre had allocated Rs 1,000 crore for farmers, but Kejriwal also refused to accept this money," he added.
Recently, the Delhi High Court issued a notice to the Delhi Government on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by all seven BJP MPs from Delhi.
The petition sought directions for the implementation of the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) in the National Capital Territory of Delhi.
However, in its response, the Delhi Government opposed the implementation of Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY, arguing that the Delhi Arogya Kosh (DAK) scheme, already in place, is a "far more robust program."
The Delhi government reply stated that the AB-PMJAY scheme would benefit only about 12 per cent to 15 per cent of the city's population, making its impact limited., and in contrast, the DAK scheme offered by the Delhi Government has a "broader and more far-reaching effect." (ANI)