Punjab’s tussle with the Union government over the branding of Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres, which the Aam Aadmi Party-led State government has renamed as ‘AAP clinics’, has become even costlier. Already, the Union government has withheld National Health Mission grants to the State to the tune of ₹621 crore; it has now said it will withhold more than ₹1,800 crore under a separate scheme to provide capital investment assistance to States unless Punjab is prepared to comply with its branding rules.
The Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centre scheme is a centrally sponsored scheme (CSS), meaning that it is funded by both Centre and State in a 60:40 ratio.
Punjab Chief Secretary Anurag Verma told The Hindu on Saturday that the Punjab government is pursuing the matter with the Union government, as these capex funds are completely unrelated to the Ayushman Bharat scheme.
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After the Punjab government submitted a proposal for 103 different projects, seeking a special assistance loan of ₹1,837 crore against its allocation of ₹1,807 crore under the Special Assistance to States Scheme for Capital Investment 2023-24, the Union Ministry of Finance has written to the State Finance department, making it clear that until Punjab complies with mandatory conditions on CSS branding and naming, the release of funds will not be considered.
Branding violations
The November 23 letter points out that the Punjab government had provided an “undertaking” on July 5, 2023, regarding full compliance with CSS branding guidelines. However, the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has reported a “violation” of these guidelines with respect to the Ayushman Bharat centres.
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The Union Finance Ministry also noted that the Punjab government had already been informed about the “branding violations” and asked to rectify them and send a compliance report in September, failing which its capital investment proposals would not be considered. The scheme offers State governments a 50-year interest-free loan up to ₹1.3 lakh crore during 2023-24 in a bid to provide a boost capital spending by States.
Punjab Health and Family Welfare Minister Balbir Singh had recently said that the Union government stopped releasing grants to Punjab under the Ayushman Scheme since December 2022, resulting in ₹621 crore worth of pending funds.
