Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Tuesday, launched an extension of the Ayushman Bharat Yojana (ABY) to senior citizens above 70 years across the country, except Delhi and West Bengal, to allow them to avail free hospital treatment up to Rs 5 lakh.

Launching the extension of the scheme at the All India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA) here on Dhanvantri Day, he said he was pained to point out that the extension of the scheme won’t apply to Delhi and West Bengal as their governments “for their political interests” had not associated themselves with the scheme.

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The prime minister said he was making the announcement in Delhi, but wanted pardon from its senior citizens, as also from senior citizens of West Bengal, that the extension of the milestone scheme would not bring any benefit to them. This is because the governments of the two states had kept themselves out of the Ayushman scheme, even when it meant almost committing an atrocity on their sick citizens.

He said he was not speaking for political reasons; he was not being allowed to “serve” the people of Bengal by its government. The senior citizens of the two states must be listening to him, but he was pained while making the announcement.

Mr Modi said now every senior citizen of the country above the age of 70 years, irrespective of income conditions, whether poor or from the middle classes, will get free treatment in hospital, as per the scheme. They will be given Ayushman Vaya Vandana Card for the scheme.

The prime minister said the scheme would prove a milestone scheme and ensure that senior citizens in the country live, without worry, with a healthy life, and with self-respect. If a senior member of the family has the Ayushman card, it will cut family expenditure, and reduce worries.

Expressing satisfaction on the expansion of Ayushman Yojana, Mr Modi said that every elderly person was looking forward to it as the fulfillment of his poll guarantee that if elected for the third term, he would bring all elderly above 70 years of age under the ambit of Ayushman Yojana.

The Prime Minister said reducing medical expenditure of people was a high priority of his government. For most people in the country, he said illness meant a lightning strike on the entire family, and especially in a poor household if somebody had a serious ailment.

There was a time when people would sell their houses, lands, jewelry, everything for treatment and still be unable to bear the huge out-of-pocket expenditure, while the poor had to make a choice between healthcare and other priorities of family.

The Ayushman scheme had already served four crore poor people in the country, he said. When he meets beneficiaries of the Ayushman Yojana in different states, he feels satisfied that the scheme was a blessing for every person associated with it, be it a doctor or a paramedical staff.

On the occasion of Dhanvantari Jayanti and the 9th Ayurveda Day, the Prime Minister also launched, inaugurated and laid foundation stones for multiple projects related to the health sector worth around Rs 12,850 crore.

He was happy that Ayurveda Diwas was being celebrated in more than 150 countries today. It was proof of the growing attraction towards Ayurveda, and India’s contribution to the world from its ancient past, he said.

The Prime Minister said the progress of a country was directly proportional to the health of its citizens. His government’s health policy had five pillars, he said, and these were preventive healthcare, early detection of ailments, free and low-cost treatment and medicines, availability of doctors in small towns and lastly expansion of technology in health services.

The projects launched today touched these five pillars, he said. Four centres of excellence under Ayush Health Scheme were being created; there was expansion of health services with the use of drones, helicopter service in AIIMS, Rishikesh; new infrastructure in AIIMS, New Delhi and AIIMS, Bilaspur; expansion of services in five other AIIMS in the country, establishment of medical colleges, bhoomi pujan of nursing colleges and other projects related to the health sector.

Seven years ago on Ayurveda day, he said, he was happy to dedicate the first phase of the All India Institute of Ayurveda to the country and was inaugurating its second phase on Tuesday.