As India's first mental health ambassador, Deepika Padukone will drive de-stigmatisation initiatives, encourage help-seeking and preventive practices.
The government on Sunday gave a strong push to upgradation and expansion of healthcare infrastructure, medical education and pharma sector with the Union Budget 2026-27 announcing a slew of steps, including those aimed at making India a global hub for allied healthcare professionals and biopharma manufacturing.
In 2025-26, the government allocated Rs 6,81,210 crore for defence budget.
Tamil Nadu has formed special teams to monitor drug manufacturers after deaths of infants in Madhya Pradesh were linked to a cough syrup made by a Tamil Nadu-based company. Inspections are being conducted at pharmaceutical firms across the state.
The Union health ministry has been allocated Rs 99,858.56 crore in the Budget 2025-2026, an around 11 per cent hike over the Rs 89,974.12 crore in the budget (revised estimates) of 2024-2025 with the government announcing setting up daycare cancer centres at all district hospitals over the next three years.
India has reported 59 cases of Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV) and two deaths due to co-morbidities between January 6 and 29, according to Union Minister Prataprao Jadhav. The virus primarily affects young children, the elderly, and immunocompromised individuals, leading to respiratory illnesses. The government has taken measures to monitor and control the spread of HMPV cases and create public awareness.
A team of doctors deputed by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has come up with a blueprint to curb tuberculosis cases in Mumbai, a top municipal official from the city said.
The government also announced that healthcare cover under the Ayushman Bharat insurance scheme will be extended to all ASHA and anganwadi workers and helpers.
Ministers' resignation accepted, portfolios farmed out
Observing that working conditions have made doctors and health professionals susceptible to violence, the Supreme Court on Tuesday constituted a 10-member task force to formulate a national protocol for ensuring safety and facilities for them in the wake of the rape and murder of a medic in Kolkata.
The health sector has been allocated Rs 89,155 crore in the Union Budget 2023-24, a hike of around 13 per cent over Rs 79,145 crore allocated in 2022-23, with the government also announcing a mission to eliminate sickle cell anaemia by 2047.
The theme for this year is "Yoga for One Earth, One Health" echoes India's vision of global wellness.
The Indian government has advised states to intensify surveillance for respiratory illnesses, including influenza-like illness (ILI) and severe acute respiratory illnesses (SARI), following the detection of five human metapneumovirus (HMPV) cases in the country. The decision comes amidst reports of a surge in HMPV cases in China. The Union Health Secretary, Punya Salila Srivastava, chaired a virtual meeting with states and union territories to discuss the situation and public health measures. While there is no cause for public concern, the government is emphasizing the importance of preventive measures such as handwashing, covering coughs and sneezes, and avoiding close contact with those showing symptoms.
The Union health ministry has deputed a high-level multi-disciplinary team to Pune to aid state authorities in instituting interventions and managing the spurt in suspected and confirmed cases of Guillain Barre Syndrome (GBS) in the city.
Despite facing financial constraints, Kerala has been able to invest in welfare schemes and targeted programmes.
A bench of Justices B R Gavai and Augustine George Masih issued notices to the Centre and others seeking their responses on a plea filed by the Delhi government against the December 24 2024 direction of the Delhi high court.
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved a three-month extension in Sudan's service, beyond the date of her superannuation, i.e. April 30, a personnel ministry order said. She will continue to function as the secretary of the Department of Health and Family Welfare during the period, it said.
Nine cases have been detected from Maharashtra, eight from Karnataka, six from Kerala, four from Tamil Nadu and two from Telangana, they added.
COVID-19 sub-variant JN.1 has spread to 15 states and Union territories with a total of 923 cases of the infection reported so far, according to the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG).
It is important to note that neither of the patients have any history of international travel, the ministry underlined.
Assembly elections are due in five states including Uttar Pradesh, Manipur, Uttarakhand, Goa, and Punjab for next year.
Night patrolling on hospital premises and regulating access for people to key areas are among the measures the Centre has asked states to implement to ensure the safety of medics at workplaces, following Supreme Court orders in the rape-murder case of a junior doctor in Kolkata.
On Monday, the ministry had put the recovery rate from COVID-19 at 22.17 per cent.
'It is clarified that no data has leaked from Co-WIN portal and the entire data of residents is safe and secure on this digital platform,' the health ministry said in a statement.
It is for the first time in the history of Independent India that not a single Muslim is part of the Union Cabinet.
'There is no rationale behind the modelling methodology used by WHO to arrive at the estimate'
The Centre on Monday advised states and union territories to screen and test of all suspect mpox cases.
The number of active cases has crossed the 150-mark in Noida, Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr Sunil Kumar Sharma said.
The move to expand the health insurance scheme's coverage comes at a time when several hospitals have complained of delays in reimbursement related to the procedures performed under the scheme.
Even though the number of cases is rising and the JN.1 sub-variant has been detected in the country, there is no cause of immediate concern as 92 per cent of those infected are opting for home-based treatment, indicating mild illness, they said.
Here is the complete list of ministers in Modi 3.0 and their portfolios:
The health ministry's decision to deny 82 medical colleges renewal permission may deliver a death blow for medical education in India, warns Dr Arun Jamkar, former vice chancellor, Maharashtra University of Health Sciences.
The Union Health Ministry will take up initiatives to check occupational health hazards faced by employees in the IT and ITES sector.
Pednekar was a nurse before coming to politics and has decided to join the team of BMC's BYL Nair Hospital to aid the COVID-19 patients in their fight against the virus.
COVID-19 cases in India climbed to 169 on Thursday after 18 fresh cases were reported from various parts of the country, according to the Union health ministry.
Twenty-two cases of COVID-19 sub-variant JN.1 have been detected in the country till Thursday, with 21 cases being reported from Goa and another from Kerala, official sources said.
'...to address the serious faultlines that had got exposed during the pandemic.' 'If the economy is looking up this year, we could have been allocated an increase of at least 20%.'
During the daily media briefing, Lav Agarwal, Joint Secretary, Union Health and Family Welfare Ministry, said that 16 districts in the country, which earlier had cases, have not reported any fresh cases for the last 28 days.
A total of 1,226 cases of COVID-19 sub-variant JN.1 have been reported in the country so far with Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh recording the highest number of cases till now, according to the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) on Thursday.
The scare of communicable diseases seems to be gripping the country with Maharashtra reporting 28 Zika cases this year, the highest since 2021.
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