The Hindu Business Line : Bengal launches healthcare programme

WEST Bengal has launched a five-year reform and investment programme for the healthcare sector in the State with a committed grant of 100 million pounds sterling (about Rs 750 crore) from the Department for International Development (DFID) of the UK.

Christened the Health Systems Development Initiative (HSDI), the programme would focus on improving service delivery at all levels, particularly the primary healthcare sector. The initiative was launched at a function held here today and attended by the West Bengal Chief minister, Mr Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, Dr Surjya Kanta Mishra, Minister for Health & Family Welfare, and Mr Suma Chakrabarti, Permanent Secretary, DFID, UK.

Mr Bhattacharjee said that the central principle of HSDI involved backing of reforms with resources that would be used to deliver quality health services to all, especially the poor in the rural areas. The focus of the programme would be on infant mortality, maternity mortality, child immunisation and institutional delivery systems. The private sector would be involved in the initiative, which would mainly target "weaker districts", he said, adding that talks had been initiated with the World Bank with a view to taking up other healthcare programmes.

According to the Chief Minister, as part of the HSDI programme, block primary health centres would be upgraded and outdoor services would be deployed to provide healthcare in areas dominated by tribals. The benefits of the DFID-aided programme would be evident within the next two years, he said. Besides restructuring of state government-owned undertakings, DFID's assistance had been sought for a programme veering round decentralisation of panchayats in the state, he said.

In his address, Mr Chakrabarti said the first instalment of the DFID assistance corpus would be released within the current calendar year. DFID had been charged with overseeing the monitoring of the programme by the Government. He said HSDI was a "radical" programme that has happened after three years of preparation.

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page