Delhi medical hub plans are being expanded through higher medical-seat capacity, new healthcare infrastructure, additional hospital staff and wider health-insurance coverage, Chief Minister Rekha Gupta said after inaugurating an IVF Centre at Sant Parmanand Hospital.
Gupta said the Delhi government was working to strengthen healthcare delivery across the national capital through greater cooperation between public and private hospitals. She said public-private partnership would be essential to developing Delhi as a major medical hub while improving access to quality and affordable healthcare and placing greater emphasis on disease prevention.
The government plans to increase MBBS seats in Delhi’s medical colleges from 595 to 820. Postgraduate seats are expected to rise from 553 to 762, expanding the pipeline for doctors and specialist training within the capital. A medical college is also being developed at Indira Gandhi Hospital in Dwarka at an estimated cost of Rs 805.99 crore.
The workforce expansion includes the appointment of more than 1,200 nurses and 954 senior resident doctors. The government has also approved more than 4,000 additional posts to strengthen staffing across the healthcare system. The figures indicate that the expansion is being planned not only through new facilities but also through additional personnel to operate them.
Five hospital infrastructure projects worth Rs 503.49 crore have been undertaken, while 300 dialysis machines have been deployed across 16 government hospitals. The measures are intended to increase treatment capacity for patients requiring regular dialysis and support the wider expansion of public hospital services.
At the primary-care level, 415 Ayushman Arogya Mandirs and 29 Jan Aushadhi Kendras have started functioning in Delhi, according to the Chief Minister. These facilities are intended to extend access to basic healthcare services and medicines beyond large hospitals. The government is also offering 56 free tests for newborns, along with 10,000 cancer screenings and HPV vaccination for girls aged nine to 14.
The healthcare package also includes expanded financial protection 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 above the age of 70 have been enrolled under Ayushman Vay Vandana.
Digital systems are another part of the government’s plan. More than one crore ABHA IDs have been generated in Delhi, and a Digital Health Management System has been introduced in 38 government hospitals. The system is expected to support the digitisation of healthcare administration across participating facilities, although the statement did not specify details on its operational scope or performance.
The announcement links Delhi’s medical-hub ambition to capacity expansion, affordability and coordination between different parts of the healthcare system. The next milestones include the development of the Dwarka medical college, implementation of the approved healthcare posts and continued expansion of hospital, primary-care and digital-health services.
