Lok Sabha Question No. 1103 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2020-02-07
Subject: Availability of Doctors in Rural Areas
Ministry: HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE
Asked by: Chandra Prakash Choudhary

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1103 TO BE ANSWERED ON 7 th FEBRUARY, 2020

## AVAILABILITY OF DOCT ORS IN RURAL AREAS

## 1103. SHRI CHANDRA PRAKASH CHOUDHARY:

Will the Minister of HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE be pleased to state:

- (a)  whether  the  Ministry  has  devised  any  plan  for pro viding  meaningful  incentives  to encourage the availability of doctors in rural areas of the country;
- (b) if so, details thereof;
- (c)whether the Ministry has any implementing and monitoring agency to make sure doctors are available in all health centres in rural areas of the country; and
- (d) if so, details thereof?

## ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE (SHRI ASHWINI KUMAR CHOUBEY)

(a) t o (b): Public health and Hospitals, being a State subject, the primary responsib to  ensure  availability  of  medical  doctors  in  rural  areas,  lies  with  the  State  Gove However,  in  order  to  encourage  the availability  of  medical  doctors  in  rural  areas  of  the country, several steps have been undertaken under National Health Mission (NHM), whic inter - alia includes:

- States are encouraged to adopt flexible norms to enable engagement of specialist public  he alth  facilities.  These  include  various  mechanisms  of  'contracting  in'  and 'contracting out' of specialist services and  methods of engaging specialists outside the government system for service delivery at public facilities.
- States  have  also  been  allowed to  offer  negotiable  salaries  to  attract  Specialist including flexibility in strategies such as 'You quote, we pay".  Financial sup also  provided  to  States  for  providing  performance - based  incentives,  providing accommodation and transport facilities in rural and remote areas, sponsoring training programmes  etc.  to  be  able  to  engage  doctors  and  specialists  in  the  public  h facilities in rural areas.
- Support is also provided to States/UTs in term of hard area allowance for doctors specialists who serve in difficult and remote areas.
- States are also advised to put in place transparent policies of posting and trans ensure rational deployment of doctors. As the posts required for health facilities a filled up by respective State/UT Governments, they are impressed upon from time time to fill up the vacant posts.

(c)&(d): Public  health  being  State  subject,  the  primary  responsibility  of  filli vacant  posts  and  monitoring  lies  with  the  States.  However,  under  NHM,  financial technical support is provided to the States for employing doctors under NHM. NHM monito the  v acancies  through  Rural  Health  Statistics  (RHS),  Health  Management  Information System  (HMIS),  Management  Information  System  (MIS)  and  Common  Review  Mission (CRM).  It  also  review  and  impresses  upon  the  States  to  fill  the  vacancies  and transparent HR pol icies in place to enable fast recruitment, retention, transparent trans posting and performance review  through forums like Central Council of Health and Fam Welfare  (CCH&FW),  Quality  Management  System(QMS),  Quarterly  Review  Meetings, National P rogramme Coordination Committee ( NPCC) and HR Bootcamps.