I am glad to be here at the Global Health Summit being organised by the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin, more commonly known as AAPI. Your Association is more than just a platform of doctors and medical practitioners. It is a link between two vibrant and democratic societies, both of which have addressed major public health challenges in their own way.
AAPIis only three-and-a-half decades old but has an impressive CV. I understand it is the largest non-profit ethnic medical institution in the United States. Your Association is a mini-India, comprising doctors with origins in all parts of our country.
AAPI and its members contribute to public health and to the discipline of medicine across the spectrum. You are consulted on legislative and policy issues and are involved in cutting-edge research. Most important, you are responsible for providing medical care and treatment to a wide variety of people, including, I am happy to note, communities living in underserved areas. It is a tribute to India’s culture of knowledge and of service that one of every seven patient consultations in the US is with an Indian or Indian origin physician.
The professional-ism and goodwill of Indian doctors in America has won them – won you, I should say – a well-deserved reputation. In fact, it has occasionally led to diplomatic gains for India for which your Association must be appreciated.
The Indian diaspora is spread across the world. Yet, wherever it goes, it has some common characteristics. It carries the democratic values and pluralistic principles of society at home. It contributes to welfare and prosperity, innovation and value creation in the society where it lives and works. Finally, it serves as a living bridge between the country of its adoption and the country of its origin – such as between the US and India.
With those words, I wish your Association and all of you individually all the best for the Summit. And I also wish you all the best for the coming new year!
Anybody with a stake in India or anybody with a stake in public health inevitably has a stake in Ayushman Bharat. That is why I would urge all of you to become part of this potentially game-changing initiative – by participating and supporting it as you can, or even by making suggestions in terms of its design and roll-out. I look forward to actionable ideas on Ayushman Bharat emerging from this Summit.
All these initiatives intend to make healthcare holistic and more affordable for all sections. However, the most far reaching initiative in health-care is the Ayushman Bharat Yojana, recently launched bythe Government of India. It has begun to provide comprehensive medical care to all our people, from little children to the elderly. It is particularly aimed at those at the bottom of the pyramid – the less-than-privileged 40 per cent of our fellow citizens.
Meanwhile stressing on preventive healthcare, the Government of India launched the Ujjawala Yojana in May 2016. By providing LPG connections to almost 6 crore households who were hitherto deprived of this clean fuel, the Ujjawala Yojana has ensured that crores of women and children no longer face adverse health effects caused by use of firewood, coal and dung-cakes as cooking fuel.
