Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh on Sunday proposed up-skilling medicos with AI (Artificial Intelligence), Quantum and other new technologies to meet the changing requirements of patient-care and to make the best use of latest diagnostic and therapeutic modalities available.

He was addressing the 63rd Annual Convocation of the National Academy of Medical Sciences (India), NAMS, at the Ramaiah Medical College in Bengaluru.

Emphasising continuous skill building, particularly among young professionals, Dr Singh said India has taken the lead in preventive and integrated healthcare under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Professional medical bodies such as NAMS and the Government could come together to provide preventive healthcare to all citizens of the country, he said.

“Wherever we are not able to provide optimum patient-care, we could at least focus on prevention of diseases through new technology means and I think that is one area which NAMS could pick up,” he said.

He said doctors, purely specializing in preventive healthcare, would not only be serving the cause of Healthcare or Medical Care, they would be actually serving a national responsibility by preserving the energies of that huge youth resource pool which is going to be the architect of India@2047, he added.

The Minister said the last nine years have turned India into a cost-effective medical destination and this has been possible because of several path-breaking healthcare reforms and enabling provisions brought in by PM Modi, ever since he took over in 2014.

“Previously India was hardly known for any preventive healthcare but today India is recognised as the vaccination hub of the world having produced DNA Covid Vaccine, the world’s first intra-nasal Covid Vaccine, India’s first indigenously developed vaccine, “CERVAVAC” for the prevention of cervical cancer and many other vaccines for different diseases,” he said.

Dr Singh said healthcare has been the top priority of the Modi Government. “From 145 medical colleges in 2014, the number has increased to 260, besides 19 AIIMS have started academic sessions.

The number of MBBS UG seats has increased from 51,348 in 2014 to 91,927 seats which is an increase of 79 per cent. The number of PG seats has also increased by 93 per cent from 31,185 seats in 2014 to 60,202 seats, he said.

“We had everything, but we were possibly waiting for an enabling milieu to happen. And that enabling milieu had to come from the level of the policy makers, from the level of the political leadership and that happened after Prime Minister Modi came in,” he said.

“The youth of today are going to be the prime citizens of India@2047, preventive healthcare and widespread mass screening will help achieve our economy the expected rate of growth set out by PM Modi,” he added.

The Science and Technology Minister asserted that Ayushman Bharat is so far the world’s best health insurance scheme and credit goes to PM Modi for having conceptualised it, he said.

This is possibly the only health insurance scheme in the world which offers the option of seeking insurance cover even for a pre-existing disease, he said.

The Minister Singh said with increase in lifespan of people, India will face a bipolar challenge during the Amritkaal.

“More than 70 per cent of the population is below the age of 40 years. On the one hand, there is a large percentage of the population of young age, and on the other hand, we have an increasing number of elderly population. Thus, we have the twin challenge of preventing spread of diseases as well as checking incapacitation,” he said.

Dr Singh said India has taken a quantum leap in the start-up ecosystem, space technology, the recent being launch of Chandrayaan-3, Quantum Technology etc. The International Biofuel Alliance, announced on the sidelines of the most successful G20 Summit in New Delhi, will have a huge bearing on the medical fraternity as well.

“This has also placed Prime Minister Modi as one of the tallest, or may be the tallest, leader in the world,” he said. The Minister said Chandrayaan-3 and India’s vaccine story are striking success stories in India’s quantum leap in the last four-five years.