Independence Day speech: Narendra Modi announces Rs 5 lakh healthcare scheme, manned mission to space by 2022

On the occasion of India’s 72nd Independence Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the nation for the last time in his current term. In his speech, Modi lauded the NDA government for its commitment to the development that has marked a space for India on the world map and also announced few schemes. Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Abhiyaan (Ayushman Bharat) [caption id=“attachment_4969111” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address on occasion of 72nd Independence Day. ANI[/caption] Putting an emphasis on affordable healthcare for citizens, mostly those who can’t afford it, Modi announced the ambitious Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Abhiyaan (Ayushman Bharat) healthcare scheme that will provide healthcare to 50 crore people. Modi said, “It is high time we ensure that the poor of India get access to good quality and affordable healthcare.” The scheme will be launched on 25 September, which is the birth anniversary of RSS ideologue Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay. The ambitious Ayushman Bharat-National Health Protection Mission (AB-NHPM) aims to provide a coverage of Rs 5 lakh per family annually, benefiting more than 10 crore poor families. The scheme aims to target poor, deprived rural families and identified the occupational category of urban workers’ families, 8.03 crore in rural and 2.33 crore in urban areas, as per the latest Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC) data, and will cover around 50 crore people. Asserting that technology will play a crucial role in the implementation of the programme, the prime minister said that in four to six weeks, testing of these technology tools under the scheme will start. India to launch a manned mission to space by 2022 The prime minister said that India will send an Indian astronaut, be it a man or a woman, by 2022 on board ‘Gaganyaan’.  The prime minister said that Indian scientists are working towards sending an Indian astronaut to space before  India celebrates its 75th year of Independence in 2022. “If possible even before, an Indian son or daughter will undertake a manned space mission on board ‘Gaganyaan’ carrying the national flag,” he said. The prime minister also lauded India’s achievements in space travel such as the Chandrayaan-1, India’s first lunar probe which was launched by the Indian Space Research Organisation in October 2008 and operated until August 2009, and the Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM), also called Mangalyaan, which a space probe orbiting Mars since 24 September, 2014. With inputs from PTI Find latest updates of Independence Day 2018 here