Congress, BJP lock horns over free treatment under Himcare scheme

The BJP and the Congress locked horns in the Vidhan Sabha today over the issue of eligible beneficiaries not getting free treatment in government health institutions under the Himcare scheme.

To Nachan MLA Vinod Kumar’s question, Health and Family Welfare Minister Dhani Ram Shandil informed the House that the Himcare scheme was still operational in all government hospitals. He added that Rs 231 crore had been paid while Rs 364 crore payments were still pending and would be cleared but no timeline could be given.

Vinod Kumar and other BJP members accused the government of misleading the House on the Himcare scheme. Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said that disbursements made under the Himcare scheme during the previous BJP government were a big scam. “The main motive of the BJP government was not to provide benefit to needy patients but to benefit its party workers, as private hospitals were arbitrarily empanelled for treatment,” he alleged.

The Chief Minister said that the Himcare scheme had not been discontinued but was being improved and Rs 550 crore had been spent under it during his tenure. “Allocations under the Himcare scheme made during the BJP regime were a scam because of total nepotism. No effort was made to replace old and outdated MRI, CT scan and other equipment and people got tests done in private hospitals,” he added.

Vinod Kumar said that the Health Minister had given wrong information to the House as free treatment under the Himcare scheme for eligible beneficiaries had been stopped. “Countless poor patients are not getting free treatment in government hospitals under the Himcare scheme,” he added. After heated exchanges, the BJP MLAs indulged in sloganeering and later walked out of the House.

To Dharamsala MLA Sudhir Sharma’s query on the installation of smart meters during the Question Hour, Sukhu said that power subsidy had not been withdrawn from even one electricity meter installed in rural areas and the government was contemplating to provide 300 units of free power to people. He added that about 12,000 to 15,000 people had surrendered 125 and 300 units of power subsidy voluntarily.

To Naina Devi MLA Randhir Sharma’s query on the total number of educational institutions closed, Education Minister Rohit Thakur said that 818 schools with zero enrollment had been denotified or merged, 535 schools with less than five students had been merged. “This rationalisation move has helped us to post 1,424 teachers in 350 schools that had no teachers. We are following the Gujarat model and 90,000 schools have been de-notified across the country on the directions of the Central Government,” he added.

Himachal Tribune