RBI’s monetary policy committee must improve its communication

The monetary policy committee should better appreciate the fallout from its inconsistent action-guidance mix across reviews

India’s infant monetary policy committee (MPC) has already made history: In just three bi-monthly reviews beginning October, it has acted upon three different inflation assessments. At this pace, perhaps one shouldn’t be surprised if the panel decides to shift to a tightening bias at the next meeting in April!

The MPC’s decision to keep the repo rate unchanged at 6.25% on 8 February was unanimous. However, the minutes of the meeting reveal all the members didn’t bless the unexpected shift in stance to neutral from accommodative, though it was the majority view. To be sure, four of the six members mentioned the need to shift the stance; only one of the three external members agreed with them.
India’s MPC’s framework has a leg up compared with other such panels. This is because the meeting minutes contain comments by each of the six members. However, the MPC is still a work in progress as it attempts to find the right balance between the policy action, justification for that action and guidance, while being clear, consistent and credible within and across reviews. The latest minutes offer some useful insights but also raise some uncomfortable questions. Communication remains a key problem area behind the disconnect between market expectations and the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI’s) shifting thought process.
The MPC has offered three different inflation assessments in as many reviews: dovish (October, when it eased and continued with the accommodative stance); uncertain/concerned (December, repo rate on hold but accommodative stance maintained; and unambiguously hawkish (February, on hold but shifted stance to neutral from accommodative).
The October rate cut was a close call as markets were struggling to decipher the new policy response function—there was a new governor, a new MPC, and, as some had flagged, a softer interpretation of the inflation target. The on-hold rate decisions in December and February were both unexpected by a wide margin. Not a single living entity anywhere in the world expected a shift in the policy stance in February.
Why have markets and the MPC been on persistently different wavelengths? It is certainly possible that those of us sitting in the trenches are clueless and have been misreading the MPC over its last three meetings. But there is more, and the committee itself is responsible for the miscommunication.
Governor Urjit Patel owes an explanation for the conspicuously missing focus on the 4% inflation target in his comments in the October minutes. This finds clear mention in the minutes for December and February. Perhaps the exclusion was because of the glaring inconsistency of the decision to cut rates despite the RBI raising the inflation forecast for FY18.
It was that repo-rate cut and the dovish tone of the statement that accompanied it that prompted financial markets to expect more easing after reassessing the monetary response function of the new institutional regime. It now turns out that that was a case of either an egregious miscommunication, or the MPC subsequently decided to become a born-again hawk. It is unclear if the latter has anything to do with questions about the RBI’s credibility with respect to demonetization.
The latest MPC minutes are also perplexing in some ways though the renewed commitment to the 4% target is welcome. First, the two members who did not favour changing the stance strangely chose not to (or were not allowed—we don’t know) share their reason(s). It is odd that the MPC concluded there was no useful information in explaining these differences.
Second, the lone external member (Ravindra Dholakia) who favoured the shift in stance is perhaps the most dovish MPC member. He was exceptionally upbeat about inflation, including the core component, according to the October minutes: “I do not see major risk to inflation if the output gap closes fast.”
Third, there is a misguided celebratory tone about the Centre’s budget and fiscal dynamics. While the budget showed a welcome restraint and had more positives than negatives, it is perhaps only in India that the government can miss the fiscal deficit target twice in three years but still be complimented for fiscal discipline!
Fourth, a related point, there is little concern about the deteriorating consolidated (Centre + states) fiscal picture. This is likely to remain under pressure because of worsening state finances. What matters for monetary policy is the consolidated fiscal position, not just the Centre’s fiscal dynamics. Only one member (Dholakia) mentioned the issue of state finances but the outlook was conspicuously absent.
Fifth, deputy governor Viral Acharya’s (first MPC meeting) insightful comments clarified the rate decision was a tough one for him and heavily influenced by external factors. This was because of the difficulty in resolving the trade-off between output gap and the persistent nature of core inflation. However, the services-led persistence in core inflation despite the manufacturing-driven low capacity utilization isn’t new, and it certainly didn’t prevent the MPC from cutting rates in October. Additionally, external concerns (eg. the fallout from Trump’s policies) existed in December as well when the accommodative stance was reiterated.

Finally, there is a missing focus on the adverse implications for monetary policy from the elusive investment recovery contributing to lowering the potential output while fiscal policy boosts consumption. This will affect how quickly the output gap closes, which in turn will affect the ability to achieve the ambitious inflation target of 4%.

The MPC must improve its communication by better appreciating the fallout from its inconsistent action-guidance mix across reviews. As a humble beginning, the central bank should explain why it has stopped uploading, beginning October, the recording and transcripts of the post-policy call with researchers. It has still not offered any explanation for this retrograde step. The RBI should walk its talk on transparency and accountability.

Battling superbugs with Big Data India, sitting at the cusp of a digital revolution, is well placed to address the antibiotic resistance problem

Antibiotics that once cured ailments across the spectrum are now turning into a potential source of prolonged illness, disability and death. The world is transitioning to a post-antibiotic era where common infections and minor injuries will begin to kill, thanks to increasing antibiotic resistance (ABR). In 2015, such resistance was identified as the cause for about 23,000 deaths annually in the US and about 25,000 such deaths in Europe. While accurate data on the incidence of antibiotic resistance in India is unavailable, the highest number of deaths caused by resistant pathogens passed on to newly born babies from mothers or the environment—approximately 58,000—was in our region.

Though ABR in certain cases occurs through the natural evolution of resistance in bacterial pathogens, the rising consumption of antibiotics is a major contributor. Topping this, the New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase (NDM) enzyme, which makes bacteria resistant to beta-lactam antibiotics, is now present globally. This indicates free movement of ABR across boundaries, with serious consequences. This is nowhere as stark as in India. Our large population is often blamed for the widespread dissemination of a higher number of resistant pathogens, commonly called superbugs. However, it is the interplay of domestic factors such as a weak public health system, cheap antibiotics available in the market, and their unregulated use, that has created ideal conditions for superbugs.

Prescription of antibiotics for a variety of diarrhoeal and respiratory infections despite their limited curative potential has exacerbated the situation. Poor regulation of pharmacies and licensing out several pharmacies to a single pharmacist introduces a large number of unqualified personnel into the supply chain. New virtual marketplaces have made the entire drug distribution process an opportunity for unchecked financial gains by irresponsible actors. The lack of awareness among patients regarding the appropriate use of antibiotics has led to self-medication and non-adherence to the prescribed course of antibiotics, further intensifying the problem.
The dramatic increase in prevalence of superbugs and the dearth of new antibiotics in the market is a warning signal for India. The absence of a good statistical model to show the relationship between antibiotic consumption and associated resistance makes it difficult to frame usage guidelines for these antibiotics. This in large measure explains the absence of any great success even post the Chennai declaration of 2012. To meet the obligations of this declaration, the National Programme on Containment of Antimicrobial Resistance was launched under the 12th Five-year Plan. A core objective was the generation of quality data from 30 laboratories on antimicrobial resistance of pathogens posing a grave public health risk. Though meant to be completed within 2017, only 10 labs have so far been brought within the data-gathering exercise.
Tackling the superbug problem requires massive data collection and analysis. Well-designed studies and indicator surveys providing general insight into the situation are critical to begin with. While studies can provide a clearer picture of the prescribed doses of antibiotics and their pattern of use (including the why, when, where, and for what relating to antibiotic consumption), indicator surveys can attempt to identify the health outcomes emerging from the use of such antibiotics for different ailments. Frequently repeated surveys, with their range expanded to track geographic and demographic representative data, are a policy imperative if India wants to build comprehensive indicators of ABR.
But tracking the data is not in itself of great use unless the health departments of the Central and state governments work in coordination with nodal bodies in the technology space to develop an information-sharing grid. The grid should also have smart data-mining solutions built into it. The virtuous loop of integration of data from various public and privately operated hospitals, pharmacies, and drug procurement services across the country, data analytics to track the correlation between antibiotic consumption and induced drug resistance, and robust information sharing with the public and health authorities is the right approach moving forward. Molecular biologists should be consulted for their insights on the genetic and molecular mechanisms responsible for such resistance.
ABR can be handled successfully once efforts are directed to establish efficient data-mining techniques and a team of specialists is trained to translate this research into useful clinical practice. The database created can certainly help in unravelling the hidden relations between antibiotic use and its associated resistance. Access to this online database can help physicians track ABR patterns; predict health outcomes; and prescribe drugs suitable for patient needs. It will not only help in improving clinical outcomes but also facilitate the deployment of computational and statistical models to accurately predict epidemics. This can aid local health bodies in issuing warnings and controlling the outbreak of infection. The scope of research can be expanded further with new hospitals, clinics and pharmacies joining the network. Big Data and analytics promise a significant step towards personalized medicine. India, sitting at the cusp of a digital revolution, is well placed to integrate such solutions with public health management and address the ABR problem.

Can the government solve all our problems?

When it comes to problems that are caused by individual action in a private space, the role of the government as a solution provider is very minimal 

Violence against women is rising. Very few individuals pay income tax. Alcoholism seems to affect more and more people. Problems around us are on the increase. The big question is, who is primarily responsible for solving these problems?

Thanks to India’s socialist beginnings, the belief that the government is responsible for taking care of all aspects of its citizens’ lives is strongly embedded in almost every Indian’s mind. So when it comes to solving the problems in our society, from keeping garbage off our roads to mitigating the problem of child trafficking, we assume that the government alone is responsible for solving these problems.
All the problems in our society are not alike. When it comes to a problem like terrorism, there is no doubt the government is best equipped to solve the problem. When it comes to mitigating the problem of sexual molestation of children, can the government be accused of inaction?

The problems that we encounter can be plotted along two continuums. One continuum is about problems that occur in one’s personal space to problems that occur in public places.

The other continuum is about problems that happen because of individual action to those problems that happen because of group action. Based on this construct, the problems around us can be classified as those occurring because of individual action in private spaces (example: marital infidelity), individual action in public places (example: open defecation), group action in a personal space (example: honour killing), and group action in public places (example: spread of communicable diseases)

The state has a significant role to play in solving problems that occur in public places, and involve a group of people. But when it comes to problems like sexual violence, not filing tax returns, obesity, etc., that are caused by individual action in a private space, the role of the government as a solution provider is very minimal.

But due to our inherent tendency to lean on the government for everything, we expect the state to solve these problems too.

Alcoholism is a problem that occurs predominantly because of an individual’s action. Certain aspects of the problem—purchasing the product, and, to some extent, the consumption of the product—might happen in public places. But without realizing that alcoholism is predominantly an individual’s problem, governments are trying to solve the problem.

Governments do what they can. They prohibit or control the sale and consumption of liquor in public places. Across the world, what this has done is to push the purchase and consumption of alcohol into private spaces where the enforcement of law is difficult.
Managing several other personal problems has become complicated because the action in question is harmless and at times is considered good in the short term. For example, one cannot find fault with someone eating a chocolate. The action gets the “problem” tag only when the person overeats chocolate every day and combines this action with inaction—not doing enough physical exercise.
Do we expect the government to pass a legislation that prescribes the amount of chocolates one can eat every day or do we expect the government to enforce fines on people who do not exercise every day?
The truth is that the government cannot do much to solve problems caused by the individual in his personal space. The only person who can do anything about solving these type of problems is the individual himself.
How does one develop solutions to these problems?
First, we need to understand the contours of the problem well. Since the problem occurs in one’s personal space, it is not easy to study such behaviour. Studies show that in the cases of sexual exploitation of children, in more than 90% of the cases, the perpetrator is a close relative of the child. In the absence of an effective mechanism to go deep into the recesses of the problem and understand why a close relative could engage in such ignoble acts, we do what comes to us easily—ignore the problem.

Only when we understand why he does what he does can we develop interventions to effectively protect our children. To develop effective solutions, we should also be able to understand the deep emotional wounds the crime creates in the victim.

Developments in the fields of cognitive neuroscience and behavioural economics are now helping us to have a better understanding of the problems that occur due to individual action in personal spaces.
Many of the problems occur because of deficiencies and biases in the human brain. For example, the human brain has great difficulty in foreseeing the consequences of one’s action in the future, more so if the present action is seen as insignificant to the gravity of the problem. Before a person throws a plastic bag into a gutter, he cannot visualize how this act could contribute to global warming.

Another surprising facet about human behaviour is that anonymity of any kind reduces the sense of personal accountability and civic responsibility for one’s actions. In the assurance of an anonymous context, the Lucifer in all of us does surface.

Understanding these and other vagaries of the human brain reminds us that managing an individual’s action in a personal space is not an easy task.
Don’t expect much help from government on this front.

Successful Test Firing of AAD Endo-Atmospheric Interceptor Missile

Successful Test Firing of AAD Endo-Atmospheric Interceptor Missile

DRDO conducted the successful launch of the interceptor missile Advanced Area Defence (AAD) at 1015 hrs today from Abdul Kalam Island, Odisha. The endo-atmospheric missile, capable of intercepting incoming targets at an altitude of 15 to 25 kms successfully destroyed the incoming missile. All the mission objectives were successfully met.

The weapon system radars tracked the target and provided the initial guidance to the interceptor which could precisely home on to the target and destroyed it in endo-atmospheric layer. The complete event including the engagement and destruction was tracked by a number of electro-optical tracking systems using infrared imagery. Radars and telemetry stations tracked the target and the interceptor till the destruction of the target. The launch has proved the Ballistic Missile Defence (BMD) prowess of the country.

Artists Shri Subodh Gupta and Smt. Bharti Kher to stay in Rashtrapati Bhavan as Artists In-Residence

Artists Shri Subodh Gupta and Smt. Bharti Kher will commence their stay in Rashtrapati Bhavan as Artists In-Residence tomorrow (March 2, 2017). They will be in residence till March 10, 2017.

Shri Subodh Gupta was born in 1964 in Khagaul, Bihar and studied at the College of Art, Patna (1983-1988). He is known for working with everyday objects, such as steel kitchen utensils. While stainless steel is his signature medium, he has also masterfully executed works in bronze, marble, brass and wood. His works have been exhibited in prestigious museums, art fairs and biennales throughout the world. Solo exhibitions of his work have been held in some of the most internationally renowned museums and galleries, including National Gallery of Modern Art (New Delhi), Museum für Moderne Kunst (Frankfurt), Victoria and Albert Museum (London), Hauser & Wirth (London, Zurich, New York and Somerset), Arario (Seoul and Beijing), Pinchuk Art Centre (Kiev) and Galeria Continua (San Gimignano, Italy). He was awarded the Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Letters, among the French government’s highest honors, for his contribution to contemporary art.

Smt. Bharti Kher born in 1969 in London is a leading Indian contemporary artist. She studied painting and design at Middlesex Polytechnic in London and then at Newcastle Polytechnic in Northern England. She is an artist committed to exploring cultural misinterpretations and social codes through her art practice. She uses the bindi as a central motif in her work to link tradition and modernity, East and West. Her famed installation, The Skin Speaks A Language Not Its Own (2006), features a life-size elephant made with fiberglass and covered with numerous white bindis, kneeling on the floor in an ambiguous state between dying and living. In her sculptures and collages, Smt. Kher has created hybrid beings that unite contradictions of gender, species, race, and social role. Sculptures such as Arione (2004) and Arione’s Sister (2006) are part-human, part-animal; sperm-shaped bindis writhe over their bodies, completing the vision of a futuristic femininity. She has been exhibiting internationally for more than two decades. Her most recent shows include the ones at the Vancouver Art Museum (Vancouver), Freud Museum (London), Rockbund Art Museum (Shanghai), 20th Biennale of Sydney (Sydney), Guggenheim Abu Dhabi (Abu Dhabi), Centre Pompidou (Paris). She is the chairperson and founding member of Khoj International Artists Association. She was also an artistic advisory for the Kochi-Muziris Biennale 2016 and is an executive committee member for Jawahar Kala Kendra Museum, Jaipur. She was awarded the Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 2015.

The ‘In-Residence’ programme in Rashtrapati Bhavan was launched by the President of India on December 11, 2013 with the aim of providing writers and artists an opportunity to stay in Rashtrapati Bhavan and be a part of the life of Rashtrapati Bhavan. The Programme seeks to provide an environment which will inspire creative thinking and rejuvenate artistic impulses. It is intended to honour and recognize eminent and established artists and writers as well as encourage young upcoming talent from different parts of the country.

Prominent Artists In-Residence who have stayed in the Rashtrapati Bhavan under this programme so far include Shri Jogen Chowdhary, MP (Rajya Sabha), Shri Paresh Maity, Smt. Jayasri Burman and Mr. Shahabuddin Ahmed of Bangladesh.

Towards Double Digit Farm Growth

The idea of incentivizing and building rural infrastructure to fight backwardness

The NDA government’s renewed emphasis on agriculture is a well thought out strategy to finally eradicate poverty and make rural poor an integral part of India’s growth story.  Rather, such spending has proved to be of temporary relief without really changing the ground reality.  It is experience that has prompted the government to initiate schemes meant to build durable rural infrastructure to motivate people adopt agriculture as a viable alternative career option.

This is an interesting departure from the past. The government’s plan is to transform the most backward districts in the country as models of India transforming. In this, the Gujarat experiment in Kutch is proving useful. The focus this time is on the 100 most backward districts in the country of which majority are in three states, Bihar, UP and Madhya Pradesh. These three states together account for seventy of the most backward districts in the whole country. More striking is that not a single most developed district in the country falls in these states. Some believe nothing can be done in the case of backward districts. But they can be made number one, said the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, recently. He was commenting on backwardness and total absence of development in certain regions in the country.

The issue of regional disparity has foxed planners for long. Previous governments have initiated many schemes specially designed for the most backward districts. Perhaps they failed because the focus was more on poverty alleviation and temporary job creation. They did not create rural infrastructure. Nor could they make agriculture profitable in the absence of roads, irrigation and connectivity.

As Chief Minister, before he became Prime Minister, Shri Modi has rebuilt the earthquake ravaged, hopelessly parched Rann of Kutch into a land of promise. Shri Narendra Modi has an unbeaten record of ushering in an era of double digit agricultural growth trajectory in Gujarat between 2003 and 2014, when the national average was languishing at less than two per cent. Shri Modi has also vowed to make the incomes of the Indian farmers double in the next four years. Taking cue from this agrarian success story, in Gujarat, a state which was never considered an agrarian state, because of the vast Saurashtra region which used to witness massive migration, cattle and people every year because of draught, many other states like MP, Chhattisgarh and now Maharashtra have adopted the techniques which were pioneered in Gujarat. This agrarian growth strategy was built on better irrigation, modern farming tools, easy availability of cheaper farm loans, 24-hour electricity and tech savvy marketing of farm produce. In each of these initiatives there is a large volume of innovative planning and hands on implementation. The NDA Government at Centre has been trying to replicate his experience in the entire country.

Soil testing to find the health condition of agricultural land is a major step in the direction of agrarian revolution. Neem coated urea is another. Building check dams, water conservation through ponds and other water conservation methods, raising the ground water level, reducing water wastage by promoting drip irrigation, changing crop pattern studying the soil fertility, water availability and market condition are other ingredients of this approach. Then reaching technology through electrification, computerization of Panchayats, building smoother roads through Pradhan Mantri Grameen Sarak Yojna which will also help marketing and internet connectivity which has been promised to reach every village are the things that will ensure development at the grass roots level.

Never before have so many poor people become bank account holders in India. Under the Jan Dhan Yojna about 30 crore new bank account has been opened. This financial inclusion is at the centre of a dynamic agrarian economy. The government in the financial year has saved Rs 50,000 crore through direct cash transfer scheme. This with free cooking gas connection to 50 million BPL families is changing lives of millions of families. The rural job guarantee scheme has been reworked with highest ever annual allocation and ensuring the availability of farm labour. These will also limit the flight of labour to cities leaving their traditional farm labour.

How can agriculture become profitable? How can the farmer income double by the turn of this decade? Will it ensure the end of rural indebtedness and farmer suicides? Yes, all this is possible if the Prime Minister is able to replicate at the national what he achieved in Gujarat. Shri Modi has put the common man at the pivot of his economic narrative. He has placed great faith in the Indian farmer and brought agriculture to the centre stage of his growth engine.  The new schemes, allocation for agrarian transformation tell this fascinating story. Rs 1.87 lakh crore is the next year allocation for agriculture and allied areas. The thrust areas in this are, MNREGA, availability of easy farm loans and better irrigation. The fund for irrigation corpus and dairy processing increased substantially. Crop insurance under Fasal Bima Yojna, along with agricultural credit yojna has Rs 10 lakh crore which is whopping compared to past records. More credit will incentivize farm investment and propel food processing industrialization. This will ensure durability and better returns for farmers. This could also boost job opportunity in rural India.

Rabi crop sowing has seen an eight per cent rise this season. Reports say the kharif crop this season is going to be a record 297 million tone because of better rain fall.  The building of better panchayat roads, 2000 kms of coastal connectivity roads and 130,000 panchayats getting high speed broadband under BharatNet will certainly improve marketing and remunerative pricing of farm products making agriculture as a profitable career option. Agriculture production is bound to leapfrog as a consequence of all these measures and the goal of food for all and complete eradication of poverty from the face of India in the near future will become a reality once these policy driven, targeted measures are executed.

NATIONAL HEALTH MISSION

 The National Health Mission is India’s flagship health sector programme to revitalize rural and urban health sectors by providing flexible finances to State Governments. The National Health Mission comprises of 4 components namely the National Rural Health Mission, the National Urban Health Mission, Tertiary Care Programmes and Human Resources for Health and Medical Education.

The National Health Mission represents India’s endeavor to expand the focus of health services beyond Reproductive and Child Health, so as to address the double burden of Communicable and Non-Communicable diseases as also improve the infrastructure facilities at District and Sub-District Levels. The National Health Mission has synergized learning from the National Rural Health Mission for better implementation of the National Urban Health Mission. The National Health Mission has an allocation of Rs. 26,690 crores for 2017-18 and is one of the largest centrally sponsored schemes of the Government of India.

The National Health Mission (NHM) brought together at National level the two Departments of Health and Family Welfare. The integration resulted in significant synergy in programme implementation and enhancement in Health Sector allocations for revitalizing India’s rural health systems. A similar integration was witnessed at State levels too. Further the NHM brought in revolutionary changes in devolution of central finances to State Health Societies outside the purview of the State Finance Departments. The second major change was the integration of the disease control programmes into the NHM framework.

The NHM brought in considerable innovations into the implementation of Health Sector Programmes in India. These included flexible financing, monitoring of Institutions against Indian Public Health Standards, Capacity Building at the State, District and Panchayat Samiti levels by induction of management specialists into the Programme Management Units and simplified HR management practices for timely recruitment through the State Institutes of Health and Family Welfare. Another significant innovation is the establishment of the National Health Systems Resource Center (NHSRC) to help design and formulate various initiatives. State Health Systems Resource Centers have also been established in some States.

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare approves Programme Implementation Plans of the State Health Societies on an annual basis with specific resource allocations under the major heads of RCH Flexi Pool, the NRHM Flexi Pool, the Flexi Pool for Communicable Diseases and the Flexi Pool for Non Communicable Diseases as also for Infrastructure strengthening. There are significant resource allocations for training programmes and capacity building. The State Health Societies have considerable autonomy to re-appropriate resources within the major heads and devolution to District Hospitals, Community Health Centers and Primary Health Centers.

The priority focus of NHM is Reproductive and Child Health services.   The successful implementation of Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY) and Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA) programmes had a significant impact in behavioral changes and brought pregnant women in large numbers to public health institutions. The NRHM flexi pool resources were utilized to create adequate infrastructure at public health institutions to cope with the heavy rush of maternity cases. Ambulance services were introduced for transportation of maternity cases to public health institutions and for emergency care. The success story of the 108 ambulance services has been well documented across many States.

The increase in institutional deliveries in High Focus States of NHM had a significant impact on Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) and Under Five Mortality Rate (U5MR). On the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) 4 and 5, the country made substantial progress. In the case of MDG 6, the country was able to meet the target and reverse the prevalence of Tuberculosis, Malaria and HIV. NHM has also performed well by adopting a continuum of care or life cycle approach as demonstrated by improvements in key health indicators.

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare added two new programmes to its basket of activities under the National Health Mission. The first is Mission Indradhanush, which has demonstrated good progress in improving immunization coverage by over 5% in the just one year. The second is the Kayakalp initiative launched in 2016 under the NHM to inculcate the practice of hygiene, sanitation, effective waste management and infection control in public health facilities. The competition for awards introduced under Kayakalp has been well received by all the States and significant improvements in sanitation standards are being witnessed.

The NHM created a peoples’ movement for health care. India has deployed nearly 10 lac Accredited Social Health Care (ASHA) workers representing transformational change agents. The ASHA workers act as mobilizers for institutional deliveries, focus on integrated management of neonatal and childhood illness and advise on home based neo-natal care. The NHM has also empowered people through Village Health and Sanitation Committees to formulate village health plans and exercise supervisory oversight of ASHA workers. At the Primary Health Centre (PHC) and Community Health Centre (CHC) level Rogi Kalyan Samitis have been activated to establish systems of oversight over the public health facilities for creating a patient friendly institution. Besides rural areas, the urban slums are now receiving attention with the launch of the National Urban Health Mission.

The National Health Mission represents India’s flagship health sector programme making the Health For All vision a reality. In its innate success lies the future of a healthy India