Union Minister of State for Agriculture Shri Parshottam Rupala launched AYUSHMAN SAHAKAR, a unique scheme to assist cooperatives play an important role in creation of healthcare infrastructure in the country formulated by the apex autonomous development finance institution under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, the National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC).

Salient Features

    • NCDC would extend term loans to prospective cooperatives to the tune of Rs.10,000 Crore in the coming years.

    • NCDC fund would give a boost to provision of healthcare services by cooperatives. There are about 52 hospitals across the country run by cooperatives with a cumulative bed strength of more than 5,000.

    • NCDC’s scheme aligns itself with the focus of the National Health Policy, 2017, covering the health systems in all their dimensions such as

        ◦ investments in health

        ◦ organization of healthcare services

        ◦ access to technologies

        ◦ development of human resources

        ◦ encouragement of medical pluralism

        ◦ affordable health care to farmers 

    • It has a comprehensive approach - hospitals, healthcare, medical education, nursing education, paramedical education, health insurance and holistic health systems such as AYUSH. Ayushman Sahakar scheme fund would also assist cooperative hospitals take up medical / Ayush education.

    • Any Cooperative Society with suitable provision in its byelaws to undertake healthcare related activities would be able to access the NCDC fund. 

    • NCDC assistance will flow either through the State Governments/ UT Administrations or directly to the eligible cooperatives. Subsidy/ grant from other sources can be dovetailed.

    • The scheme also provides working capital and margin money to meet operational requirements.

    • The scheme provides interest subvention of one percent to women majority cooperatives.

    • Ayushman Sahakar specifically covers establishment, modernization, expansion, repairs, renovation of hospital and healthcare and education infrastructure encompassing:

        ◦ Hospitals and/ or Medical/ AYUSH/ Dental/ Nursing/ Pharmacy/ Paramedical/ Physiotherapy Colleges for running UG and /or PG programmes,         

        ◦ Yoga Wellness Centre,

        ◦ Ayurveda, Allopathy, Unani, Siddha, Homeopathy and other traditional medicine healthcare centres,

        ◦ Health care services for elderly,

        ◦ Palliative care services,

        ◦ Health care services for Persons with Disabilities,

        ◦ Mental healthcare services,

        ◦ Emergency Medical Services / Trauma Centre,

        ◦ Physiotherapy centre,

        ◦ Mobile Clinic Services,

        ◦ Health Club and Gym,

        ◦ AYUSH pharmaceutical manufacturing,

        ◦ Drug testing laboratory,

        ◦ Dental care centre,

        ◦ Ophthalmic care centre,

        ◦ Laboratory services,

        ◦ Diagnostics services,

        ◦ Blood Bank / transfusion services,

        ◦ Panchkarma/ Thokkanam/ Kshar sutra therapy centre,

        ◦ Regimental Therapy of Unani (Ilaj Bil Tadbeer) centre,

        ◦ Maternal health and Childcare services,

        ◦ Reproductive and Child Health services,

        ◦ Any other related centre or services as may be deemed fit by NCDC for assistance,

        ◦ Telemedicine and remote assisted medical procedures,

        ◦ Logistics health, healthcare and education,

        ◦ Information and Communication Technology related to digital health,

        ◦ Health insurance accredited by Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA)

About NCDC

NCDC was set up under an Act of Parliament in 1963 for promotion and development of cooperatives. Since 1963, it has extended around Rs.1.60 lakh crore as loans to cooperatives.

Functions of NCDC

Planning, promoting and financing programmes for production, processing, marketing, storage, export and import of agricultural produce, food stuffs, certain other notified commodities e.g. fertilisers, insecticides, agricultural machinery, lac, soap, kerosene oil, textile, rubber etc., supply of consumer goods and collection, processing, marketing, storage and export of minor forest produce through cooperatives, besides income generating stream of activities such as poultry, dairy, fishery, sericulture, handloom etc.

NCDC Act has been further amended which will broad base the area of operation of the Corporation to assist different types of cooperatives and to expand its financial base. NCDC will now be able to finance projects in the rural industrial cooperative sectors and for certain notified services in rural areas like water conservation, irrigation and micro irrigation, agri-insurance, agro-credit, rural sanitation, animal health, etc.

Loans and grants are advanced to State Governments for financing primary and secondary level cooperative societies and direct to the national level and other societies having objects extending beyond one State. Now, the Corporation can also go in for direct funding of projects under its various schemes of assistance on fulfillment of stipulated conditions.

(The author is a trainer for Civil Services aspirants. The views expressed here are personal.)