MP bags top honour for biometric pre-authorisations under Ayushman Bharat: Dy CM Shukla
Bhopal, July 20 (IANS) Madhya Pradesh has bagged national recognition under the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana for recording the highest number of pre-authorisations with biometric authentication.
Sharing the details about the development, Deputy Chief Minister Rajendra Shukla on Monday termed it a reflection of the state’s focus on transparent and technology-driven health services.
Expressing happiness over the achievement, Rajendra Shukla said, “This achievement is a testament to the government’s commitment to transparency in health services, technology-driven good governance, and public-welfare initiatives.”
Madhya Pradesh was conferred the award in the “Best Performing Large State – Highest Pre-authorizations with Biometric Authentication” category during a national review meeting, Chintan Shivir, organised by the National Health Authority at Madhya Pradesh Bhawan in New Delhi.
The honour was given for effective, transparent and successful implementation of the biometric-based pre-authorisation process under Ayushman Bharat. With this, the state has secured a leading position among the country’s large states.
The award was presented to Arvind Shah, Chief Executive Officer of Ayushman Bharat Niramayam Madhya Pradesh, by Punya Salila Srivastava, Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
Senior officials from the National Health Authority and UIDAI, including NHA CEO Dr Sunil Kumar Barnwal and Joint Secretary Shri Kiran Gopal Vaska, were present on the occasion.
Shukla congratulated the entire team of Ayushman Bharat Niramayam Madhya Pradesh, district officials, hospitals, and all personnel associated with the scheme for ensuring smooth implementation at the ground level.
He said under the leadership of Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, the government is working to make health services more accessible. Officials said the use of biometric authentication for pre-authorisations has helped curb fraud, speed up approvals for eligible beneficiaries and bring greater accountability in utilisation of public funds.
The process links patient verification with Aadhaar, ensuring benefits reach the intended recipients without delay.
The state government has been pushing for wider adoption of technology in health delivery, including digital records, online claims processing and real-time monitoring of hospital services.
The recognition comes at a time when the Centre is reviewing the performance of states on various parameters of Ayushman Bharat implementation.
–IANS
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