SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir has been approved 10 Critical Care Blocks (CCBs) under the Pradhan Mantri-Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM), while no CCB has been sanctioned for Ladakh under the scheme’s Centrally Sponsored Scheme component, according to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
The Ministry told the Rajya Sabha that 631 CCBs have so far been approved for States and Union Territories under the scheme. Jammu and Kashmir’s 10 approved units account for about 1.6 per cent of the national total, placing it below the national average of roughly 18.6 approved blocks per State/UT among the 34 jurisdictions listed in the annexure.
Jammu and Kashmir has fewer approved CCBs than neighbouring Himachal Pradesh, which has nine, but more than Uttarakhand’s five. Punjab has 22 and Haryana 22, while Rajasthan has 38. Ladakh and Lakshadweep have no provision for CCBs under the scheme, the Ministry said.
At the national level, Uttar Pradesh has the highest number of approved CCBs at 74, followed by Madhya Pradesh with 50, Tamil Nadu with 39, and Bihar and Rajasthan with 38 each. Maharashtra has 36, Karnataka 34, Gujarat 32 and Telangana 31. The lowest allocations among jurisdictions with approved units are one each for Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Arunachal Pradesh, DNH and DD, Mizoram, Nagaland and Sikkim.
The Ministry said PM-ABHIM is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme with certain Central Sector components aimed at strengthening the country’s public health system by integrating health service delivery, public health action and health research, and improving the capacity of the system to respond to pandemics and other public health emergencies.
It said the Centre provides technical and financial assistance to States and UTs for establishing CCBs, but implementation rests with the respective governments as public health and hospitals are State subjects.
According to the Ministry, delays in projects, wherever reported, have generally been linked to difficulties in identifying and appointing executing agencies, preparation and approval of Detailed Project Reports, land-related issues, particularly in urban areas, tendering and procurement, and other State-specific implementation challenges.
The Ministry said it monitors the progress of CCB projects through review meetings, field visits and continuous engagement with States and UTs, besides providing technical and administrative support to facilitate timely completion.
It added that a monitoring mechanism has been established to track implementation and operational readiness. The CCBs are intended to strengthen district-level critical care infrastructure, increase surge capacity and improve preparedness for future public health emergencies, with progress and readiness reviewed periodically.
