Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta has announced a broad expansion of healthcare infrastructure across the national capital, including higher medical seat capacity, new hospital projects, additional healthcare staff, expanded insurance coverage and wider digital health services.
Gupta made the announcement after inaugurating a newly developed In Vitro Fertilisation centre at Sant Parmanand Hospital. She said stronger collaboration between public and private hospitals would be essential to developing Delhi as a major medical hub and improving access to quality and affordable healthcare.
According to the details shared by the Chief Minister, MBBS seats in Delhi’s medical colleges will increase from 595 to 820, while postgraduate seats will rise from 553 to 762. A new medical college is also being developed at Indira Gandhi Hospital in Dwarka at an estimated cost of Rs 805.99 crore.
The healthcare workforce is also being expanded. The government has appointed more than 1,200 nurses and 954 senior resident doctors, while more than 4,000 additional posts have been approved. The figures indicate that the expansion plan is focused not only on physical infrastructure but also on staffing capacity in public hospitals and health facilities.
Five hospital infrastructure projects worth Rs 503.49 crore have been undertaken, while 300 dialysis machines have been deployed across 16 government hospitals. The government has also said that 415 Ayushman Arogya Mandirs and 29 Jan Aushadhi Kendras are functioning in Delhi.
Under the Ayushman Bharat scheme, the Delhi government has added another Rs 5 lakh to the Centre’s existing Rs 5 lakh health cover, taking the total annual coverage to Rs 10 lakh. More than 8.94 lakh Ayushman cards have been approved, while over 3.09 lakh senior citizens aged above 70 have been enrolled under Ayushman Vay Vandana, according to the figures cited by Gupta.
The expansion also includes digital and preventive healthcare measures. More than one crore ABHA IDs have been generated, and a Digital Health Management System has been introduced in 38 government hospitals. The government is offering 56 free tests for newborns, along with 10,000 cancer screenings and HPV vaccination for girls aged nine to 14.
Gupta said the government was placing greater emphasis on disease prevention while expanding treatment capacity. The next phase of the plan will involve continuing the medical college, hospital infrastructure, workforce and digital health initiatives announced by the Delhi government.
