The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today laid the Foundation Stone of the National Centre for Aging at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi.This will provide the older population with multi-speciality healthcare. It will have 200 general ward beds.

During the same event, the Prime Minister also inaugurated the 555-bed Super Speciality Block in Safdarjung Hospital. He dedicated the 500-bed New Emergency Block in Safdarjung Hospital; the 300-bed Power Grid Vishram Sadan in AIIMS; and the Connection Motorable Tunnel between AIIMS, Ansari Nagar and Trauma Centre.

The Prime Minister said that in the last four years, a new direction has been given to public healthcare in India. He said that through a series of policy interventions, the Union Government is aiming at a situation where the poor and middle class can access good healthcare services.He said that existing healthcare infrastructure is being upgraded, and good healthcare facilities are being extended to tier 2 and tier 3 cities.

Mentioning the National Health Policy, the Prime Minister said that affordable healthcare and prevention of diseases are also high on the Government’s agenda. He said that Rural Development Ministry, Drinking Water and Sanitation Ministry, Women and Child Development Ministry, and AYUSH Ministry are all involved in this multi-disciplinary approach. 

The Prime Minister said that India has set a target to eliminate TB by 2025, which is well before the global target of 2030. He said he trusts the country’s medical sector to accomplish this task.