On the occasion of the launch of the "Ayushman Vaidya Yojana" in Delhi, Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri called it the "beginning of a new era of public welfare". In a message on social media 'X' on Monday, he said, "A society that cares for its senior citizens is a truly humane society. A new journey of development has begun in Delhi under the Triple Engine Government."
Inspired by the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and launched under the leadership of Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, under this scheme, Delhiites aged 70 and above will get free healthcare benefits of up to Rs 10 lakh per year. Hardeep Singh Puri said that patients will be able to avail cashless services for a total of about 2,000 types of medical procedures through 47 private and 10 government hospitals in Delhi. All expenses including treatment, medicines, diagnosis, surgery, room rent, operation theatre and ICU services will be covered under the scheme.
At a function held at Thyagaraj Stadium, Union Minister Puri and Chief Minister Rekha Gupta handed over Ayushman Bharat cards to senior citizens. Minister Puri congratulated the Chief Minister and her team for achieving significant progress in just 65 days. He mentioned that after taking charge on February 20, 2025, the Rekha Gupta government has started activities to reduce pollution in the Yamuna river and address the problem of garbage piles in Delhi.
Incidentally, in October 2024, Prime Minister Modi announced that all citizens above 70 years of age in the country would be covered under the health insurance scheme through the expansion of the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY). With this expansion, all senior citizens, irrespective of their socio-economic status, will get free health insurance of Rs 5 lakh every year. And those already covered under AB PM-JAY will get an additional health insurance of Rs 5 lakh.
In addition, it has been decided that those who are beneficiaries of the Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS), Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) or Ayushman CAPF Scheme can remain in the existing scheme or join AB PM-JAY. Even members of private health insurance or ESI schemes will be eligible to come under this scheme.
This humanitarian and welfare initiative is expected to open a new horizon in the field of healthcare for senior citizens.
