6.53 lakh people given free treatment under Swasthya Sathi in Bengal: Mamata

Kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said on Thursday that around 6.53 lakh people from the state have been given free treatment under the 'Swasthya Sathi' scheme in private and government hospitals since its launch and nearly Rs 670 crore has been spent for the same.

Taking to Twitter, Banerjee stated: "For the people of West Bengal, treatment, diagnostics and drugs are now completely free in all government hospitals. In addition, free treatment up to Rs 5 lakh in private hospitals has also been made available to 7.5 crore citizens of Bengal under Swasthya Sathi scheme."

She further added: "Since its launch, a total of 6.53 lakh people have been treated under this scheme and the government has spent close to 670 crore on it. Now, 1,472 hospitals including 983 private hospitals are providing treatment to Swasthya Sathi beneficiaries in the state."

It may be mentioned here that introducing free health treatment for the patients including those suffering from critical diseases has been a significant achievement for the Mamata Banerjee government.

In another milestone, the state Health department has set up mother and child hubs in various government hospitals under the 'Health for All' programme, following the Chief Minister's instruction.

As a result of the initiative, the infant mortality rate (IMR) has gone down from 32 to 25 per 1,000 live births and maternal mortality rate (MMR) from 113 to 101. Bengal is the first state to bring about the concept of mother and child hub in the state-run hospitals.

Institutional delivery has improved to 97.5% in the state, following various health schemes taken up by the government. After becoming the Chief Minister, Banerjee had launched a number of projects for expectant mothers and newborn infants. These projects have brought about a great deal of improvements in the health sector, thereby reducing the infant mortality rate. The Bengal government has also built 43 new multi/superspecialty hospitals at the sub-divisional level, bringing great relief to the common people. The state government has also brought the concept of 'waiting huts'. The idea has been conceptualised to increase institutional delivery in the rural areas.