Partner with India to make world healthier place: Mandaviya

Davos, Jan 17 (PTI) Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Tuesday invited global leaders to partner with India to make the world a healthier place and said the government is institutionalising medical tourism through a new ‘Heal In India’ initiative.

This will create an enabling framework for providing health services to the world at large, the minister said during the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2023 here.

He invited all the stakeholders to look at India as a land of opportunities and take advantage of the same by partnering with India.

“This endeavour would lead towards making India and the world a healthier place,” he said while addressing a Health & Healthcare Community Dinner organized by the WEF.

“We are working towards augmenting health infrastructure and have initiated multiple schemes to strengthen health systems and improve health service delivery with focus on quality, accessibility and affordability of healthcare services,” the minister said.

Talking about India’s vision of according the topmost priority to healthcare as ‘seva’ (service), he said, “Be it launch of the world’s biggest government funded health assurance scheme, PM Jan Aarogya Yojana covering approximately 500 million people or establishment of 150,000 health & wellness centres, we have put the vision of ‘Antyodaya’, that is, ‘Rise of the last person’ into action in healthcare and a key facet of ensuring Universal Health Coverage.”

Mandaviya said India has the highest number of USFDA manufacturing plants outside the US, besides being a world leader in generic medicines.

It has emerged as a hub for R&D activities and is one of the leading destinations for high-end diagnostic services, he added.

Mandaviya also held a bilateral meeting with Federal Minister of Health of Germany, Karl Wilhelm Lauterbach where he lauded the cooperation shown by the German counterparts and said he is hopeful of continuing and strengthening this cooperation in future as well.