Reacting strongly to the miserly allocation of 1.58 per cent of GDP as proposed in the 12th Plan document by Planning Commission, Union health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad has written to Mr Montek Singh Ahluwalia, flagging his concerns over the draft Plan and has demanded higher allocation for the health sector.
The lower allocation for the health sector — officials in the health ministry say — goes against Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s directions to the Plan Panel to raise resources in a way that public spending on health increases to 2.5 per cent of the GDP over the five years of the Plan period.
Recalling the Prime Minister’s address on Independence day last year where the PM had stated that he would propose to the NDC that the 12th Plan should be focused on health and funds will not be a constraint, Mr Azad, in his letter, has said the plan document should at least convey that efforts would be made to raise the public investment on health up to 2.5 per cent of the GDP by the end of 12th Plan, subject to availability of resources.
“While I appreciate the current resource constraint, given the fact that the approach paper had highlighted that public investment on health would reach 2.5 per cent of GDP, the plan document should at least convey that,” Mr Azad has said in his letter sent to Mr Ahluwalia this month.
The health minister’s letter also hits out at the Plan Panel’s suggestions that promote “privatisation of health”.