Fact Checking Government claims about establishment of AIIMS & addition of Medical seats
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 1, 2019
The BJP government published an infographic on the 48-months portal with claims about hospitals and doctors. This article is a fact check of the claims.
The BJP government published an infographic on the 48-months portal with claims about hospitals and doctors. This article is a fact check of the claims.
What is the PMSSY?
The annual report  (2017-18) of the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW) states that ‘the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY) has been launched with the objective of correcting regional imbalances in the availability of affordable/reliable tertiary healthcare services and to also augment facilities for quality medical education in the country. PMSSY has two components – setting up of AIIMS like institutions and up-gradation of existing State Government Medical Colleges/ Institutions and is being taken up in phased manner. Upgradation programme broadly envisages improving health infrastructure through construction of Super Specialty Blocks/Trauma centres etc. and procurement of medical equipment for existing as well as new facilities on Central and State share basis. In first phase of PMSSY, six AIIMS one each at Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Jodhpur, Patna, Raipur and Rishikesh and up-gradation of 13 existing State Government Medical Colleges/Institutions(GMCIs) have been taken up. Under Phase-II of PMSSY, AIIMS at Rae Bareli and up-gradation of 6 is being taken up’.
The website of PMSSY states that ‘PMSSY was first launched in March 2006 with the primary objective of correcting the imbalances in availability of affordable/reliable tertiary level healthcare in the country in general and to augment facilities for quality medical education in the under-served States’.
Are 20 new super specialty hospitals being set up?
The first claim is that ‘20 new super specialty AIIMS – like hospitals being set up’.
The website of the scheme states that ‘six AIIMS-like institutions, one each in the States of Bihar (Patna), Chhattisgarh (Raipur), Madhya Pradesh (Bhopal), Orissa (Bhubaneswar), Rajasthan (Jodhpur) and Uttaranchal (Rishikesh) have been setup under the PMSSY scheme. Approved cost of each new AIIMS in first phase was 820 crores. Rs. 620 crores towards cost of construction and Rs. 200 crores for procurement of Medical Equipment and modular Operation Theatres’.
The six AIIMS mentioned above were approved by the union cabinet in 2006 and a revised cabinet approval was given in 2010, both during the UPA. As per the latest information shared in the Lok Sabha, these six institutions are more or less functional.
In addition to these, the current government has approved setting up of 15 AIIMS like institutions in the last 5 years, as per the information shared in the Lok Sabha.  Thirteen of these have received cabinet approval and are at various stages of implementation.
Claim: 20 new super specialty AIIMS – like hospitals being set up
Fact: Six AIIMS-like institutions have been setup under the PMSSY scheme and are functioning, all of which were approved during the UPA. The current government approved setting up of 15 new AIIMS like institutions in these 5 years. Hence the claim is MISLEADING.
Have 2 new AIIMS been announced?
The second claim is that ‘2 new AIIMS announced for Jharkhand and Gujarat in 2017-18’.
Phase six of the PMSSY saw the announcement of two new AIIMS, one in Gujarat and one in Jharkhand. This announcement was made in the budget speech of 2017-18. Both these have been approved by the cabinet (one in May 2018 & the other in January 2019)
Claim: 2 new AIIMS announced for Jharkhand and Gujarat in 2017-18
Fact: 2 new AIIMS in Jharkhand and Gujarat were announced in the 2017-18 budget speech. This announcement pertains to the phase VI of the PMSSY. Hence, the claim is TRUE.
Are 73 government medical colleges being upgraded?
The third claim is that ‘73 government medical colleges being upgraded’.
The website  of PMSSY shows that a total of 75 government hospitals have been upgraded over the 5 phases of the scheme. More than 50 of these upgradations were approved during the UPA. Hence the claim is misleading.
Claim: 73 government medical colleges being upgraded
Fact: 75 government hospitals have been upgraded over the 5 phases of the scheme. However, more than 50 of these upgradations were approved during the UPA. Hence the claim is MISLEADING.
Have 1600 beds been added to AIIMS?
The fourth claim is that ‘1675 hospital beds added in the functional AIIMS’.
The six new functional AIIMS together have more than 4000 beds. But it is not clear as to how many of these were added during the current government.
Claim: 1675 hospital beds added in the functional AIIMS.
Fact:  The six new functional AIIMS together have more than 4000 beds. But it is not clear as to how many of these were added during the current government. Hence, the remains UNVERIFIED.
Has there been an increase in number of medical colleges and seats?
The fifth claim is that ‘total 92 medical colleges, resulted increase of 15,354 MBBS seats’.
The annual report  (2017-18) of the MoHFW states that ‘at present, there are 479 medical colleges in the country, out of which 227 in Government and 252 are in private sector with annual admission capacity of 67,352 MBBS and 31415 PG’.
The annual report (2013-14) of the MoHFW states that, ‘at present, there are 387 medical colleges in the country out of which 181 are in government and 206 in private sector with annual admission capacity of about 51,979 MBBS and 24,196 Postgraduate students per year’.
In other words, during the current government, 92 new medical colleges have been setup with an addition of more than 15000 MBBS seats.
Claim: Total 92 medical colleges, resulted increase of 15,354 MBBS seats
Fact: During the current government, 92 new medical colleges have been setup with an addition of more than 15000 MBBS seats. Hence, the claim is TRUE.
Have more than 12,000 PG seats been added?
The last claim is that ‘total 12,646 PG seats have been increased’
The annual report  (2017-18) of the MoHFW states that ‘at present, there are 479 medical colleges in the country, out of which 227 in Government and 252 are in private sector with annual admission capacity of 67,352 MBBS and 31415 PG’.
The annual report (2013-14) of the MoHFW states that, ‘at present, there are 387 medical colleges in the country out of which 181 are in government and 206 in private sector with annual admission capacity of about 51,979 MBBS and 24,196 Postgraduate students per year’.
Hence the total addition of PG seats during the current government (till the claim is made) is only more than 7000.
Claim: Total 12,646 PG seats have been increased.
Fact: The total addition of PG seats during the current government (till the claim is made) is only more than 7000. Hence, the claim is FALSE.
This story is part of a larger series on the 4-years of the Modi government. This series has been made possible with the flash grant of the International Fact Checking Network (IFCN). Read the rest of the stories in this series here