Ignoring health in the budget as utter disappointment - Statement by IDPD Feb 1, 2022

Indian Doctors for Peace and Development (IDPD)

Date: 01.02.2022

IDPD terms ignoring health in the budget as utter disappointment

The Indian Doctors for Peace and Development (IDPD) as termed the annual budget as total disappointment from the point of view of health budget. Dr S S Soodan President, Dr Arun Mitra Sr Vice President and Dr Shakeel Ur Rahman Gen Secy said that not a single word has been mentioned about increasing the expenditure on health in her long speech today. The only mention is about Mental Health even on that no special budgetary sanction has been declared. About vaccination programme there are several countries who have done even better vaccination rate as per the Proportion of population than us.

It is worth noting here that as per the public health expenditure india is among the lowest 5 in the world. Our health spending is only around 1.1% of the GDP. In the previous budget last year the total allocation to health was only 2.04 %. To meet the basic health needs a minimum of 5 % of the GDP is required on public health spending. As an immediate need the budgetary allocation should have been raised from 2.04 l% to minimum of 6%.

Dr Arun Mitra
Sr Vice President
Indian Doctors for Peace and Development (IDPD)
139-E, Kitchlu Nagar, Ludhiana - 141001 (Punjab)
Email: idpd2001[at]hotmail.com
Website: idpd.org