Partap Singh Bajwa, the leader of the Opposition in the Punjab assembly, accused the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-led state government of misleading the public through its highly publicised healthcare infrastructure and the Mukh Mantri Sehat Yojana (MMSY).
Bajwa pointed out that while the 2025-26 budget earmarked nearly ₹778 crore for the scheme, it has reportedly failed to treat a single patient despite being “inaugurated” five times. “This is perhaps the only health scheme in the country where hundreds of crores of taxpayers’ money have been burnt on billboards, publicity stunts, and advertisements without delivering healthcare to a single beneficiary,” he said.
Calling the scheme a “cruel joke” on the people of Punjab, Bajwa demanded that the AAP government answer for its failure to implement the Ayushman Bharat health scheme before launching another insurance programme. He reminded the government that the Punjab and Haryana high court has already taken note of repeated delays in payments to empanelled hospitals, exposing “hollow claims” of healthcare reform.
Launched in 2018, Ayushman Bharat guarantees free treatment of up to ₹5 lakh per family, with expenses shared in a 60:40 ratio between the Centre and the states. However, Bajwa said that the Punjab government has failed to clear over ₹500 crore in dues to private hospitals, pushing the healthcare system into disarray.
Terming the government’s conduct “blatantly insincere”, Bajwa highlighted that 320 newly recruited doctors have remained in administrative limbo for months. “Instead of issuing appointment letters…the government now plans to empanel 300 private specialists to compensate for a shocking 47% vacancy rate. Is outsourcing healthcare the ‘revolution’ that Punjab was promised?” he asked.
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