From October 2, the Punjab government is ready to implement a big public welfare scheme – the Mukhyamantri Sehat Bima Yojana. Through this scheme, the Punjab families will be provided with free health insurance cover of ₹10 lakh per annum with cashless hospitalization in government and private hospitals. Around 65 lakh families will be covered.
What the Scheme Offers
The scheme is provides fully cashless and paperless medical care. People can get treated in both public and private hospitals without paying from their pockets. There is no income limit, meaning anyone can benefit including government employees, Anganwadi workers, and ASHA workers.
The government aims to bring 500 private hospitals into this program and expand that number to 1,000 in the future. In addition, those who already have the Ayushman Bharat card will still be eligible and receive an extra ₹5 lakh coverage under this scheme.
₹778 Crore Budget for 2025–26
Cabinet Minister Sanjeev Arora also posted the scheme details on social media. He has asserted that the Punjab government has provided ₹778 crore for this scheme in the state budget. While an earlier version of the scheme already covered ₹5 lakh per family, this new plan increases that benefit to ₹10 lakh annually.
Now, 29 lakh families are already covered under the existing health scheme, and 16 lakh families are connected with the central government’s Ayushman Bharat Yojana.
Kejriwal’s Promise Becomes Reality
This was initially announced by Arvind Kejriwal, AAP leader, in a public rally at Chandigarh. He had also made a promise of free healthcare before AAP formed the government in Punjab. Now, that promise is turning into action.
Experts Raise Red Flags on Implementation
Despite the big promise, some healthcare experts have raised questions. Dr. Arun Mitran, a senior doctor from Ludhiana, says the scheme is good on paper, but there’s a lack of transparency. He believes the government should first improve public hospitals, which already offer free treatment, instead of pumping money into private ones.
Dr. Mitran also questioned whether private hospitals will agree to treat patients at government-fixed rates, and whether the scheme will cover OPD services and medicines, which are the biggest cost for most families.
BJP Calls It a Political Stunt
The Punjab BJP has also criticized the plan. Party spokesperson Gurdeep Gosha said the government failed to pay dues under the Ayushman Bharat scheme, leading private hospitals to stop treating patients. He asked how the government plans to fund this new scheme when it’s already facing a financial crisis.
He blamed the AAP government for declaring something without a plan, spending crores of money on advertisements but with no proper implementation at the ground level.
Though the ₹10 lakh free health insurance program is reassuring, there are apprehensions about its rollout, hospital empanelment, and transparency. The next few months will tell whether such a grandiose promise actually expands access to healthcare among Punjab’s populace or amounts to another pre-poll promise turned sour.