NEW DELHI: Applauding both government and private health sector of the country in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic in India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Tuesday, February 23, said that 2020 was a test for our country, as well as for the world. India has been successful in this struggle and the commendation also goes to the private sector.
Terming this year’s budget allocation to the health sector as exceptional, PM added that COVID-19 has taught us that we need to be equipped and ready for future diseases too. Hence, it is necessary to strengthen all aspects of the health sector- from medical equipment to medicine, from ventilators to vaccine, from doctors to epidemiologists.
It is high time to take convenience and affordability to the next level, Modi said, as he said how India’s health sector has been an example for the world. He further said that in the coming days, the world’s dependence on India will only increase. India’s medical education, doctors, and nurses will soon be in significant demand. We must keep this in mind.
Addressing a webinar on the effective implementation of the provisions of Budget 2021 in the health sector, Modi said, government’s budget allocation is a catalytic agent. Things will change on ground only when we all work together. The government’s approach is holistic as it encompasses cleanliness, nutrition, wellness, the prevention of diseases and all other allied sectors.
Paralleling COVID-19 and tuberculosis (TB), Modi said that if the same precautionary action is taken against TB, India will be free from TB by 2025 as TB too spreads from the droplets of an infected person.