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No expert committee has been set up for extending <keyword id="19923745" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="health-benefits" source="keywords">health benefits</keyword> to cover citizens aged 70 and above under <keyword id="19913233" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Ayushman-Bharat" source="keywords">Ayushman Bharat</keyword>, <keyword id="22556022" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Union-Minister-of-State-for-Health" source="keywords">Union Minister of State for Health</keyword> Prataprao Jadhav told the Lok Sabha on Friday. He was responding to a question on whether the government proposed to cover citizens aged 70 and above by expanding Ayushman Bharat through the launch of a <keyword id="21782708" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="National-Health-Claims-Exchange" source="keywords">national health claims exchange</keyword> and if an expert panel had been set up to strengthen the format of the scheme for the planned expansion. Jadhav, in a written reply, said all members of eligible families, irrespective of age, were covered under Ayushman Bharat - Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana. The scheme provides <keyword id="19894985" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="health-insurance" source="keywords">health insurance</keyword> cover of Rs 5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation to 55 crore individuals, corresponding to 12.34 crore families, he said. "No expert committee has been set up for extending the health benefits to cover <keyword id="19894991" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="senior-citizens" source="keywords">senior citizens</keyword> aged 70 and above," he stated. Responding to another question, Jadhav said 34 insurers and third-party administrators were live and approximately 300 hospitals ramping up to start sending their claims on the National Health Claims Exchange (NHCX), which aims to streamline and fasten health <keyword id="35450" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Insurance" source="Orion">insurance</keyword> claim processing, as on July 21. Jadhav said the government built the NHCX gateway under the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission. It aims to streamline and standardise health insurance claim processing, enhance efficiency in the insurance industry and improve patient experience. It serves as a gateway for exchanging health claim information among insurers, third party audit, healthcare providers, beneficiaries and other relevant entities and ensures interoperability, machine-readability, auditability and verifiability, making the information exchange accurate and trustworthy, the minister said. This system will enhance efficiency and transparency in the insurance industry, benefiting policyholders and patients, he added. Supported by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India and the General Insurance Council, the NHCX will enable standardised and faster health insurance claim processing, Jadhav said.

No panel formed for extending benefits to cover citizens above 70 under Ayushman Bharat, says govt

A parliamentary committee has recommended setting up population-based cancer registries in rural areas to help data-driven and evidence-based policy formulation. It has also suggested raising taxes on tobacco products citing that increasing their market price would make them less affordable. This will result in lower consumption and decrease the risk of tobacco-related diseases, including cancer, the panel said. The <keyword id="46535" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="health-ministry" source="Orion">health ministry</keyword> must pursue with the Department of Revenue to expedite the decision on raising taxes on tobacco products, the Department-related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health and Family Welfare said in its 147th report. It was presented in <keyword id="48510" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="rajya-sabha" source="Orion">Rajya Sabha</keyword> on Friday. It said for better policy formulation on cancer treatment and uniform distribution of cancer care, there is an urgent need to have realistic information about the incidence and type of cancers across the country. The committee said that the health ministry should take appropriate steps to persuade state governments to participate in the formulation of the cancer atlas so that the entire Indian population is covered under Population Based Cancer Registries (PBCRs). This will help in data-driven and evidence-based policy formulation, it said. It suggested that PBCRs can be linked to the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission to record data of cancer patients to get real-time information on cancer-related illnesses. "The committee has taken note that currently PBCRs cover 16 per cent of the Indian population only. Therefore, it is quite necessary that the National Cancer Registry Programme cover the population of India extensively, in order to have a unified national database for scientific understanding of epidemiology of cancer," the report said. Stressing a robust screening mechanism for cancer, the committee suggested that one day in a month can be fixed for cancer screening. While appreciating the government's impetus on an institutional framework for cancer care and management and financial support for combating cancer, the committee said cancer must be dealt with separately instead of being a part of other lifestyle and non-communicable diseases. It recommended the demerger of the National Cancer Control Programme (NCCP) from the National Programme for Prevention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular diseases and Stroke (NPCDCS) to have a better focus on screening, early diagnosis and management of cancer. In its report, the committee said that in all the leftover districts Non-Communicable Diseases (<keyword id="131571" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="ncd" source="Orion">NCD</keyword>) clinics should be set up at the earliest and more healthcare professionals be trained for screening of common cancer. The panel highlighted that adequate human resource in cancer centres is crucial for their complete operationalisation and recommended setting up subsidised or free accommodation for patients and their relatives near cancer hospitals. The National Health Authority (<keyword id="672062" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="nha" source="Orion">NHA</keyword>) should consider including all types of cancer diagnostic tests under the Ayushman Bharat <keyword id="6524177" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="pradhan-mantri" source="Orion">Pradhan Mantri</keyword> Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY), it said. It appreciated that in compliance with the committee's recommendations, the NHA has approved the inclusion of diagnostic tests under the AB-PMJAY with respect to breast, cervical and oral cancer. The committee noted that the health ministry has set up the e-Sanjivini Ayushman Bharat-Health Wellness Centre (AB-HWC), where doctor-to-doctor telemedicine services can be delivered through the hub and spoke model. It recommended that this model should be strengthened so that the opinions of experts can be provided to cancer patients in isolated and backward areas. The ministry should instruct National Cancer Grid (<keyword id="1502308" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="ncg" source="Orion">NCG</keyword>) officials to explore group negotiation of commonly used high-value cancer drugs with pharmaceutical companies through a transparent central tendering platform to have substantial discounts on cancer drugs. Since the mandate of the National Pharmaceuticals Pricing Authority is to ensure the availability of drugs at affordable prices, the committee reiterated that the pricing of cancer drugs should not be guided by profit as in the case of the other businesses. If it is not possible to reduce the profit margin of such drugs, the government may subsidise it, it said in its report. "The committee feels that the submission made by the Secretary, Department of Pharmaceutical, before the committee that over a period of about eight years or so the actual price increase in the drugs had been only between two to four per cent, does not mean that each manufacturer keeps the price of the drug below 10 per cent, as the mechanism permits them to make the hike up to 10 per cent," the report said. The committee said the government should rationalise the annual price hike limit of cancer drugs from 10 to five per cent in order to rescue poor cancer patients. It also suggested the ministry look at subsidising the healthcare cost for cancer patients and declare radiotherapy service as an essential commodity. The ministry should take the matter on board immediately and declare radiotherapy service as an essential commodity so that patients can get some relief from bearing the high cost of the service, it said. SEE ALSO:<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/india-puts-curbs-on-laptop-and-tablet-imports-heres-how-it-could-impact-you/articleshow/102430014.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/india-puts-curbs-on-laptop-and-tablet-imports-heres-how-it-could-impact-you/articleshow/102430014.cms" target="_blank">India puts curbs on laptop and tablet imports – here’s how it could impact you</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/indian-smartphone-market-sees-a-declines-in-q2-vivo-in-the-lead/articleshow/102417485.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/indian-smartphone-market-sees-a-declines-in-q2-vivo-in-the-lead/articleshow/102417485.cms" target="_blank">Indian smartphone market sees a declines in Q2; Vivo in the lead</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/news/electric-two-wheeler-sales-recover-in-july-2023/articleshow/102347978.cms">Electric two-wheeler sales recover after spending June in the pitlane</a>

Parliamentary panel recommends setting up of population-based cancer registries in rural areas

<ul><li><keyword id="6199405" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="ayushman-bharat">Ayushman Bharat</keyword> – Pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY), <a href="https://pib.gov.in/Pressreleaseshare.aspx?PRID=1546948">gave free medical treatment worth ₹7,500 </a>crore (a little over $1 billion) within a year after launch.</li><li>According to government figures, 60% of the total funds were utilized in intensive medical <keyword id="395015" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Treatments">treatments</keyword> by colleges.</li><li>The scheme targets more than 500 million beneficiaries to reduce the catastrophic expenses on availing medical healthcare. </li></ul> India's flagship health scheme, Ayushman Bharat – Pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY), <a href="https://pib.gov.in/Pressreleaseshare.aspx?PRID=1546948">gave free medical treatment worth ₹7,500 </a>crore (a little over $1 billion) within a year after launch. According to government figures, 60% of the total funds were utilized in intensive medical treatments by colleges. A year ago, the government launched the "world's largest government-funded healthcare program," <a href="https://www.livemint.com/budget/news/health-budget-focuses-only-on-ayushman-bharat-other-schemes-ignored-1549049697730.html">setting aside ₹2,400 crore for the year 2018-19.</a> The government later increased the budget by 166% to ₹6,400 crore for the current financial year ending March 2020. The scheme targets more than 500 million beneficiaries to reduce the catastrophic expenses on availing medical healthcare. Families of patients saved ₹12,000 crore The idea was to have cashless and paperless access to services for the beneficiary at the point of service. The scheme promises to cover ₹500,000 per family per year to avail services in government hospital and other some of the partner private hospital. As of now, the beneficiary families have saved ₹12,000 crore owing to PM-JAY, claims the government.However, the scheme leaves out middle class people in India -- that makes up 28% of the country's population. So far now 32 states and Union Territories in India are a part of the scheme. And Delhi, Odisha, Telangana and West Bengal are yet to implement it. “More than 17% of Indian population spend at least 10% of household budgets for health services”,<a href="https://pib.gov.in/Pressreleaseshare.aspx?PRID=1546948">said </a>the government statement in a press release released on September 22.” Separately, UN has also warned that about 5 billion people being deprived of primary healthcare by 2030. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/medical-errors-take-five-lives-every-minute-and-cost-40-billion-annually-who/articleshow/71183301.cms">Medical errors take five lives every minute and cost $40 billion annually: WHO</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/5-billion-people-will-miss-basic-healthcare-as-countries-hold-back-investments-says-who/articleshow/71253074.cms">5 billion people will miss basic healthcare as countries hold back investments, says WHO</a>

Over $1 billion spent on 4.6 million treatments in a year-- the story of the world's largest government-funded healthcare programme

<ul><li><keyword id="6354720" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="ola">Ola</keyword> partnered with <keyword id="6199405" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="ayushman-bharat">Ayushman Bharat</keyword> - Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana to provide its drivers with a health insurance. </li><li>A pilot project of this collaboration will take place in Delhi-NCR. </li><li>Through this, the drivers will have access to 18,073 government and private hospitals empaneled under PM-JAY.</li></ul>Indian ride hailing unicorn Ola partnered with the government’s Ayushman Bharat to offer health insurance benefits to its drivers and their families. “We are addressing the evolving needs of our driver-partners, offering them, and their families, access to reliable and quality healthcare services,” said Vijay Ghadge, Vice President- Operations, Ola. Through this initiative, <keyword id="2777438" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ola-drivers">Ola drivers</keyword> will get access to Ayushman Bharat - Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana, the government’s healthcare scheme. While the initiative will be initially available to Ola’s drivers in Delhi NCR, it will soon be rolled out to the over 2 million drivers on the ride hailing platform. “Hundreds of thousands of eligible driver-partners will be able to access in-patient care for serious illnesses at a country-wide network of 18,073 government and private hospitals empaneled under PM-JAY,” the company said. The company launched several initiatives under its Ola Foundation. It plans to impart skills to 500,000 women by 2025. The foundation will also provide employment-linked skills training, financial literacy and social empowerment through life-skills education.

Ola partners with Ayushman Bharat to provide health benefits to its drivers

New Delhi, Dec 5 () The National Health Authority (NHA) on Thursday said it has signed an agreement with Bharti Foundation, The Akshaya Patra Foundation and HelpAge India to raise awareness about Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY).
 Under the agreement, Bharti Foundation will raise awareness about the the public health scheme across 16 states, HelpAge among the elderlies and Akshay Patra will raise awareness about the project through its school network.
 Indu Bhushan, chief executive officer of AB-PMJAY and NHA, in a joint statement said the partnership with The Akshaya Patra Foundation, Bharti Foundation and HelpAge India has provided us an opportunity to reach out to the potential beneficiaries.
 "We believe that these organisations' long-term presence in the rural areas and their grassroot connection will help us in achieving the desired awareness level for the scheme across the country," Bhushan said.
 AB-PMJAY scheme provides an annual health cover of Rs 5 lakh to poor families for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation through a network of empanelled health care providers (EHCP).
 Under the agreement, Bharti Foundation will hold sensitisation drives with its school network targeting stakeholders such as school children, parents and the immediate village community.
 "This collaboration is in line with our efforts to ensure better life for underprivileged families in rural India," Mamta Saikia, chief executive officer of Bharti Foundation, said
 NHA will conduct various community campaigns, parent meetings and rallies and engage with local panchayats and other community members to sensitise the underprivileged community about objectives and benefits of the AB-PMJAY, the statement said.
 AB-PMJAY has more than 19,000 hospitals empanelled where nearly 68,37,588 people have availed of treatments under the scheme. PRS HRS

NHA signs pact with Bharti Foundation, HelpAge India for awareness about Ayushman Bharat

New Delhi, Jan 31 () To promote preventive healthcare, 1.5 lakh Ayushman Bharat Health &amp; Wellness Centres are proposed to be set up by 2022, according to the Economic Survey 2019-20.
 The Survey was tabled in Parliament on Friday by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
 A total of 28,005 such centres have already been set up as on January 14, 2020, it added.
 "Under Mission Indradhanush, 3.39 crore children and 87.18 lakh pregnant women in 680 districts across the country have been vaccinated," the Survey noted.
 New vaccines such as Measles-Rubella (MR), Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine, Rotavirus Vaccine and Inactivated Polio Vaccine have also been introduced, it added.
 "As per the latest National Health Accounts (NHA) 2016-17, the out of pocket expenditure as a percentage of total health expenditure has declined from 64.2 per cent in 2013-14 to 58.7 per cent in 2016-17," the Survey said.
 Primary healthcare accounts for 52.1 per cent of India's current public expenditure on health as per the National Health Estimates, 2016-17. The National Health Policy, 2017 recommended to spend at least two thirds of the government's health expenditure on primary healthcare, it added.
 "Ayushman Bharat- Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY), the world's largest health insurance scheme, is a major step towards providing affordable healthcare to the identified poor," the Survey said.
 The scheme has been rolled out based on the deprivation and occupational criteria of the Socio-Economic Caste Census for rural and urban areas, respectively, it added.
 In another step, "Under Free Drugs Service initiative, substantial funds have been given to States for provision of free drugs. All States/UTs have notified policy to provide essential drugs free in health facilities," the Survey said.
 Free diagnostics service initiative was also launched to address the high out of pocket expenditure (OoPE) on diagnostics and improve quality of healthcare services, it added.
 In addition, Pradhan Mantri Bharatiya Jan Aushadi Pariyojana (PMBJP) and Pradhan Mantri National Dialysis Programme (PMNDP) are some of the new initiatives that address the issue of high OoPE on account of drugs and hospital care, the Survey said.
 According to the Survey, to address the shortage of doctors, the government has embarked on an ambitious programme for upgradation of district hospitals into medical colleges. In last 5 years, the government has sanctioned 141 new medical colleges.
 The government has also supported states to add nearly 2.51 lakh additional health human resources, it added.
 The launch of Ayushman Bharat has marked a paradigm shift in the way healthcare is delivered. Ayushman Bharat targets universal health coverage by focusing on preventive, promotive and palliative care apart from ambulatory care and by providing protection against catastrophic health expenditure for secondary and tertiary hospital care, the Survey said.
 "The focus of healthcare is on four important pillars - preventive healthcare, providing affordable healthcare, building medical infrastructure and mission mode interventions for maternal health, child health and to combat communicable and non-communicable diseases...," it added.
 With the marked increase in burden of non-communicable diseases, the government is focused on addressing this epidemiological transition from communicable diseases to noncommunicable diseases, the Survey said. AKT AKT ANU
ANU

1.5 lakh Ayushman Bharat Health & Wellness Centres to be set up by 2022: Survey

Prime Minister <keyword id="6354477" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Narendra-Modi">Narendra Modi</keyword> will review next week the implementation status of some key decisions taken by the Union Cabinet, including those taken way back in July 2014. 

	Scheduled for February 17, this will be the second such review meeting that Modi will undertake with the Council of Ministers in just about three weeks.
 

	The 27 decisions of the Cabinet and the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs whose implementation status would be reviewed include the amendments to the Factories Act and the Apprentices Act, which were cleared over one and a half years ago in July 2014, sources told PTI.
 

	PM Modi had chaired a similar meeting of the Council of Ministers on January 27 as well.
 Other decisions slated for implementation status review are setting up of a <keyword id="974618" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Credit-Guarantee-Fund">Credit Guarantee Fund</keyword> for providing guarantees to loans extended under the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana, operationalisation of Budget announcement of 2015-16 on the Atal Pension Yojana, the Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana and the Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana. The prime minister will also check progress in the <keyword id="2473706" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Pradhan-Mantri-Jan-Dhan-Yojana">Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana</keyword>, the <keyword id="6562839" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Swacch-Bharat-Mission">Swacch Bharat Mission</keyword> for urban areas, the Housing for All by 2022 mission, the <keyword id="946830" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="National-Skill-Development-Mission">National Skill Development Mission</keyword>, the National Health Mission and the Deendayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana. 

	Other such decisions relate to the National Ayush Mission, amendment to the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Bill, 2014, setting up three new All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) at Mangalagiri, Nagpur and Kalyani and strengthening of the drug regulatory system.
 

	The decisions relating to setting up of six new IITs and IIMs, amendment to the Payment of Bonus Act, 1965, and the nationwide celebration of 125th birth anniversary of BR Ambedkar will also figure in the status review.

PM Narendra Modi to review implementation status of Cabinet decisions for the second time in 3 weeks

<ul><li>The <keyword id="6199405" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="ayushman-bharat">Ayushman Bharat</keyword> scheme, which will cover nearly 110 million families to the tune of ₹500,000 per year, is set to be launched on September 25th. </li><li>Out of the 26 states which have signed MoUs for the scheme, only 4 have opted for the insurance model, while 20 have chosen to set up trusts. </li><li>Under an insurance model, the state appoints a insurance company to handle all claims, while in a <keyword id="22629" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="trust">trust</keyword> model, they establish a trust to disburse <keyword id="6354750" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="health">health</keyword> payments. </li></ul> In his inaugural Independence day address, India’s prime minister Narendra Modi announced that his government’s national <keyword id="6362363" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="health-insurance">health insurance</keyword> scheme, Ayushman Bharat, would be launched on September 25th. The scheme, which covers families to the tune of ₹500,000 per year, is expected to reach 500 million Indian citizens - making it the world’s largest public health insurance programme of its kind. When the scheme was first announced, it was assumed that India’s insurance companies would be key facilitators of the wide-ranging scheme, which has an expected premium outlay of ₹100 billion in the first year itself. However, a month before the scheme’s launch, it looks like the scheme won’t generate a lot of business for them. Trust vs insurance model The scheme is being carried out by state governments, who have two options. Either they take the normal insurance model, wherein they appoint a insurance company to handle all claims, or they opt for a trust model, wherein each state establishes a trust and disburses health payments and reimbursements through that fund. In the trust model, the fund involves a 60% contribution from the central government, with 40% coming from the state’s coffers. The central government has set aside ₹852 billion in its budget for the scheme. Out of the 26 states which have signed memorandums of understanding (MoU) for the scheme, only four - West Bengal, Jharkhand, Manipur and Nagaland - have opted for the insurance model, while 20 have chosen to set up trusts, according a report in the Indian Express. The states which are estimated to have 40% of the scheme’s intended recipients - Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana and Bihar - have all opted for the trust model. Two other states, Gujarat and Chhattisgarh, have chosen a hybrid approach that combines both models, with the former awarding a contract to the state-owned Oriental Insurance Company and the latter contracting the services of Religare Health Insurance. OIC successfully bid a price of ₹361 to cover each family to the extent of ₹50,000 while Religare bid ₹1,100 for the same level of coverage. For any payouts above ₹50,000, the <keyword id="51011" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="state-government">state government</keyword>’s trusts will step in. The popularity of the trust model isn’t without reason. Given the natural uncertainty around insurance payouts and premium increases, it’s a lot easier from a budgetary standpoint to establish a trust with government funds than be on the hook for payments to insurance companies. A trust model allows the government to set prices. Under the UPA government’s health insurance scheme, the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY), a lot of state governments ran into arrears after having to subsidise the health insurance premiums of so many citizens. The RSBY scheme was also tainted with concerns that insurance companies were submitting very low bids and not honouring their claims. The trust model could overcome some of the hurdles of the previous national health insurance scheme, but its success rests on the ability of state governments to process claims and disburse payments in an efficient manner.

India’s insurers are being left out of the country’s national health insurance scheme

New Delhi, Apr 3 () PSU oil firms are delivering an average over 60 lakh LPG cylinders daily to consumers during the nationwide lockdown to feed household cooking needs, Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said on Friday as he pushed companies to prepare to deliver three free cylinders to over 8 crore Ujjwala beneficiaries. Pradhan interacted with dozens of district nodal officers of Indian Oil Corp (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) over video-conferencing to access the distribution of LPG cylinders in districts following the coronavirus outbreak and the subsequent 21-day nationwide lockdown, an official statement said here. The district nodal officers (DNOs) of oil marketing companies are responsible for LPG deliveries in their assigned areas. "Appreciating the efforts of DNOs and their teams, Pradhan said that in this time of unprecedented crisis, the LPG teams of the companies have risen to the occasion and delivered the cylinders on time despite so many restrictions and health hazards," the statement said. He said that due to the COVID-19 crisis and the nationwide lockdown, the consumption and demand of cylinders have gone up. "The OMCs (oil marketing companies) are delivering on an average 50-60 lakh cylinders daily, and are playing an important role in the national fight against Covid-19," it said. Pradhan asked the three oil marketing companies to now gear up to provide 3 free cylinders to over 8 crore Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) beneficiaries over the next 3 months. He asserted that 15 port terminals, 195 LPG bottling plants and the transportation network are currently operating everyday despite lockdown, ensuring sufficient availability and uninterrupted supplies of LPG products in the country. The government had last month announced free cooking gas to PMUY beneficiaries, who are poor women who got free cooking gas connections since 2016, as part of the economic stimulus to deal with the lockdown. Three 14.2-kg LPG cylinders come together with free foodgrain and cash for the poor. Pradhan said advance funds are being provided to the LPG distributors for releasing the first free cylinder, and the scheme should be implemented efficiently so that poor sections of the society do not suffer in this time of difficulty. "The minister also called the OMCs to help the migrants and provide food to them," the statement said. "He called upon the DNOs to generate awareness among the masses and all the stakeholders about health precautions and social distancing." The DNOs reported that after the initial hiccups, things have settled down. The panic booking of cylinders, which was noticed in the initial few days of the lockdown, has stopped, the statement said adding that the waiting period of the cylinder delivery has come down. DNOs, according to the statement, said the announcement of the special ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh for LPG delivery boys and others involved in the supply chain in case of a casualty due to COVID-19, has boosted the morale of the staff at the field level. ANZ HRS

Oil firms delivering over 60 lakh LPG cylinders daily during lockdown: Pradhan

On the celebration of <keyword id="3658" type="COUNTRY" weightage="20" keywordseo="India">India</keyword>’s 72nd <keyword id="28240" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Independence-day">Independence Day</keyword>, the country’s prime minister addressed the nation making a few key announcements about future projects. One of the more significant developments was the promise of a manned space mission by 2022. But closer home, the Ayushman Bharat Healthcare Scheme is set to launch on 25 September. Here are the <keyword id="6381696" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="highlights">highlights</keyword> from Modi’s Independence Day address: <div type="image" title="independence day highlights" msid="65423758" hostid="261"></div>

 1. <keyword id="6797456" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Gaganyaan">Gaganyaan</keyword> to take off in 2022 The preparations for the India’s first manned space mission have already been in the news for a while but the PM has officially set a launch deadline for 2022. Currently, project ‘Gaganyaan’, an initiative of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), is in its initial stages having successfully tested the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/isro-pads-up-to-make-indias-manned-mission-into-space-a-reality/articleshow/64887057.cms">Crew Escape System</a>. That being said, while ambitious with its intentions, ISRO has had trouble meeting past deadlines. Most recently, the Chandrayaan-2 mission set to launch in April and then in October, is now looking at a 2019 launch date. But, the chairman of ISRO also warned that the launch maybe delayed to March if the changes aren’t made to the spacecraft in time. 2. Ayushman Bharat Healthcare scheme to launch on 25 September Also called the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Abhiyaan, the prime minister claims that it will benefit nearly 500 million citizens of the country. The scheme aims to give ₹500,000 ($7,123) cover per year for a whole family. Inclusive of nearly 1,354 packages within the scheme, the measure covers 100 million vulnerable families. That’s over 40% of the Indian population. The initiative, though necessarily for a country like India where statistics indicate that 67% of health expenditure is out-of-pocket, has ruffled a few feathers. There are questions over whether using third party administrators is the best idea and how easy it would be to exploit the loopholes in the scheme. 3. Permanent commissioning of <keyword id="624" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Women">women</keyword> in the <keyword id="3790" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Armed-forces">armed forces</keyword> It’s not that women weren’t allowed in the Indian armed forces before, but with permanent commissioning, they can now be a part of the direct combat arms like the infantry, armoured corps and artillery. The current 3,700 women employed in the armed forces are restricted to officer posts. This initiative opens up a myriad of career choice where they can now apply for subordinate posts to achieve the ranks of colonels, brigadiers, major generals and lieutenant generals. 4. New agricultural export policy soon In a mission to double farmer incomes in India by 2022, the prime minister has stated that a new agricultural export policy will be rolled out soon that will boost their compensation. Using the ‘Beej se Bazaar tak’ (from planting seeds to accessing the market) approach, Modi expressed the importance of value addition. While no other details were revealed during the Independence Day address, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry did publish a Draft Agricultural Export Policy back in March that was aimed at doubling India’s agricultural exports and integrating agricultural commodities in to the global value chain. 5. <keyword id="95908" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Panchayat-polls">Panchayat polls</keyword> in Jammu and Kashmir It’s been seven years since the last panchayat polls in the volatile state of Jammu and Kashmir. The polls that were supposed to take place in 2016 were, first, postponed due to the unrest that followed the death of Burhan Wani and then, eventually cancelled due to ‘security concerns’. Even the local body elections haven’t been conducted in over eight years now. According to the state’s Governor, NN Vohra, the local body election will happen first over the course of September and October followed by the panchayat polls from October to December. Reviewing the country’s progress over the past couple of years, Modi made it a point to assert how his government has pulled pending initiatives through without directly pointing the finger at the Opposition. That being said, a fact-checking report by <a href="https://www.thequint.com/news/india/independence-day-speech-modi-fact-check">The Quint</a> calls those claims into question. Which is why though these announcements may bring a ray of hope to many, expectations should be adjusted keeping past performances in mind.

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