DW BUREAU / Chandigarh

The ruling AAP in Punjab Saturday accused the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre of discriminating against the state after Union Health Minister J P Nadda asked Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann to clear the dues of private hospitals under the Ayushman Bharat scheme.

Private hospitals in the state have stopped providing cashless treatment to Ayushman Bharat cardholders due to their mounting dues with the state government.

The Aam Aadmi Party's Punjab unit chief spokesperson and MP Malvinder Singh Kang on Saturday said that of the total outstanding amount of Rs 376 crore under the Ayushman Bharat scheme, Rs 220 crore is owed by the Central government.

He also claimed that the Union government was withholding Rs 950 crore of Punjab's share under the National Health Mission (NHM).

In addition to these funds, the Narendra Modi government is also withholding the rural development fund (RDF) and mandi development fund (MDF) for Punjab, Kang claimed.

He said that Rs 6,800 crore of RDF and Rs 177 crore of MDF are owed by the Central government.

"The Modi government was compelled to withdraw anti-farmer bills due to widespread protests but is now systematically undermining the 'mandi' system in Punjab," Kang alleged.

Highlighting the space crunch for storing new paddy crops, the AAP leader claimed that despite repeated requests, the Central government was not evacuating grains from Punjab's godowns.

The Centre was withholding over Rs 8,000 crore of Punjab across various central schemes, including the RDF and the NHM, he said and asked Nadda to explain why such significant funds were being withheld if the Union government truly cared about the people of Punjab.

The BJP government was "discriminating" against Punjab, Kang alleged.

He further claimed that the Central government has reduced the debt limit of Punjab State Power Corporation by 50 per cent.

"The BJP has consistently acted against the interests of Punjab and farmers, and instead of releasing funds owed to Punjab, they are blaming the state government for their own failures," Kang said.

Notably, the Private Hospital and Nursing Home Association (PHANA) in Punjab claimed that the state government owed over Rs 600 crore and also had threatened to stop providing medical treatments under the Ayushman Bharat Mukh Mantri Sehat Bima Yojna.

Notably, the Ayushman Bharat Mukh Mantri Sehat Bima Yojana offers cashless treatment up to Rs 5 lakh per family annually.
(editor@dailyworld.in)