BHUBANESWAR: National BJP president and Union Health minister Jagat Prakash Nadda is set to arrive on a two-day visit to the state on Friday to launch the much-awaited Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY), Gopabandhu Jan Arogya Yojana and PM Vay Vandana Yojana (PMVVY) at the Balijatra Ground in Cuttack.
Giving details of Nadda’s engagements, state BJP president Manmohan Samal said these health assurance schemes will benefit approximately 3.5 crore people of the state providing them with health coverage of `5 lakh per family per annum, with an additional `5 lakh for women members.
Under the BJD government’s Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana (BSKY) scheme, Samal said, free medical treatment was available at only 978 hospitals, leaving many people without access to healthcare. With the launch of Ayushman Bharat, people of Odisha, both within and outside the state, will now receive quality medical treatment free of cost at over 29,000 hospitals across the country.
Unlike one health card provided by the previous government under the state scheme, Samal said, with AB PM-JAY, health cards will be issued to each member of a family. All senior citizens aged 70 and above will be provided Ayushman Vay Vandana card which will help them avail health- care benefits.
After launching the three schemes, Nadda will inaugurate the new building of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Post Graduate Institute of Paediatrics in Cuttack. On his return to Bhubaneswar, he will visit Central Institute of Plastics Engineering & Technology (CIPET) and AIIMS Bhubaneswar, Samal said.
Nadda is also scheduled to inaugurate a three-day training programme of BJP MPs and MLAs in Puri on Saturday. The training will cover organisational, administrative and ideological aspects, as well as strategies for effective implementation of all promises made by the party.
