CHANDIGARH — Balbir Singh, Punjab’s Health and Family Welfare Minister, has raised the alarm about how bad the recent floods were for the state’s healthcare system, which is believed to have lost ₹780 crore. The announcement was made at a press conference on Monday, shortly before Prime Minister Narendra Modi was supposed to visit the flood-affected parts of Punjab on Tuesday.
Balbir Singh gave a gloomy account of the damage, saying that the floods have destroyed pharmaceuticals worth ₹130 crore and seriously affected a large network of health facilities. This includes 1,280 health and wellness facilities and dispensaries, 101 community health clinics, and 31 of the state’s 41 sub-divisional hospitals.
The Health Minister has already written to Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda to tell him about the damage and ask for money right away. Now, he is directly asking the Prime Minister for a big and immediate aid package. He said, “The backbone of healthcare in Punjab’s cities and villages has been broken.” “This isn’t just about buildings; it’s also about losing life-saving equipment, important medicines, and the places where millions of Punjabis go for care.”
Balbir Singh said that the state needs more than just unity and has asked the central government for at least ₹20,000 crore to help reconstruct the important infrastructure and enable a full recovery across the state.
Along with the immediate relief funding, the Health Minister also repeated the Punjab government’s long-standing request for the Centre to release ₹60,000 crore in pending funds right away. He said that these funds are highly important for the economy of Punjab, which was hit hard by floods. He also took a time to attack Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, telling the Prime Minister to look at Punjab’s problems in a bigger, more caring way and give “concrete action and urgent funds, not just token gestures.”
Balbir Singh lauded the Health Department’s untiring labor in the flood-ravaged areas, from principal secretaries to ASHA workers, even though there was a lot of damage. He said that medical teams have been using every means at their disposal, such as ambulances, boats, and helicopters, to help. He also thanked the NGOs and volunteers for their help without expecting anything in return.
The Punjab administration, led by the AAP, has promised to stand with the people during this crisis and keep pushing for the help that is needed to develop a stronger and more resilient healthcare system for the state.