The Maharashtra government has approved the creation of a dedicated Urban Health Commissionerate to streamline the delivery of public health services across its growing urban population and address the long-standing administrative overlap between state departments. The move, endorsed by the state cabinet this week, is part of the government’s Developed Maharashtra 2047 vision aimed at building inclusive, resilient, and well-governed urban systems.
Nearly half of Maharashtra’s residents now live in cities spread across 29 municipal corporations, 247 municipal councils, and 147 nagar panchayats. Despite this, healthcare responsibilities have been divided between the Urban Development and Public Health departments, often resulting in fragmented planning and delayed service delivery. The new commissionerate, housed within the Public Health Department, is expected to bridge this gap by ensuring better coordination, accountability, and resource management. According to officials, a new post of Commissioner (Urban Health)—to be held by an Indian Administrative Service officer—will head the body. Medical officers across municipal corporations will be deputed through the Public Health Department, while each municipal council will gradually establish a Health Officer position in the Group-A cadre. “The focus is to professionalise city-level health administration and integrate preventive and curative care,” an official noted.
Experts in public policy have welcomed the initiative, calling it an essential reform for fast-urbanising regions like Mumbai, Pune, and Nashik, where public health infrastructure often lags behind population growth. By consolidating authority under one commissionerate, Maharashtra aims to reduce bureaucratic delays in managing urban epidemics, sanitation drives, and hospital services. In a related decision, the cabinet also expanded the Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Jan Arogya Yojana—the state’s flagship free healthcare programme for economically weaker sections. The scheme will now cover treatment for 2,399 illnesses, up from 1,300 earlier, with free treatment available up to ₹5 lakh per family. For certain critical diseases, the limit will rise to ₹10 lakh or more.
Officials said this expansion would significantly ease the financial burden on urban low-income families, who are often the hardest hit by healthcare costs in private facilities. Additional treatment packages approved by the cabinet are expected to enhance hospital participation in the scheme, boosting healthcare access across the state. With these reforms, Maharashtra appears to be moving towards a more equitable, integrated, and sustainable health governance model—one that recognises that the path to healthier cities lies not only in medical infrastructure, but in stronger urban systems built on inclusivity and efficiency.
Also Read : Maharashtra CM Sets Deadlines For 10 Key Infra Projects Including Mumbai Pune Metros
