Finance
Following the BJP’s historic victory in West Bengal, the state previously ruled by Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress is expected to receive the Centre’s health insurance plan Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY), which gives cashless coverage of Rs 5 lakh per year to households. The plan automatically covers all citizens over the age of 70.
During his victory speech at the BJP headquarters in Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi finally announced the scheme’s implementation in Bengal.
“A journey for the future of Bengal is beginning today, one where development, steadfast trust, and new hopes will march forward hand-in-hand. I assure every resident of Bengal that the BJP will work day and night for a better future for the state,” PM Modi said.
“In Bengal, women will now find an environment of safety, and the youth will find employment. Migration will come to a halt. In the very first cabinet meeting, the Ayushman Bharat scheme will be given the green signal,” he said.
Except for Bengal, 35 states and union territories offer a government health insurance system to their inhabitants. Despite being a centrally supported system, the costs are shared by the federal and provincial governments. Last year, Odisha and Delhi launched the system, which is immensely popular among locals because the expense of medical treatment may severely deplete a family’s funds.
Bengal, which was ruled by the Trinamool Congress, and Delhi, which was ruled by Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), both declined to participate in the Ayushman Bharat initiative, citing their own health insurance programmes.
The Centre had lambasted them for playing politics at the expense of residents’ healthcare needs.
The BJP has won over 200 seats in Bengal, far exceeding the majority required to terminate the Trinamool’s 15-year control in the eastern state.
