Only 469 hospitals on board PM Rahat as Chief Secretary orders enrolment push
Chief Secretary Sanjay Jaju has directed District Collectors to ensure that every eligible network hospital in the State is enrolled under the Pradhan Mantri Rahat (PM Rahat) scheme, which provides timely medical treatment to road accident victims.
Mr. Jaju reviewed the implementation of the scheme on Friday with District Collectors, Superintendents of Police and transport officials. He said accident victims could receive treatment worth up to ₹1.5 lakh under the scheme if they were admitted to a nearby hospital during the golden hour — the first crucial period immediately after a crash, when prompt medical care can save lives and reduce the severity of injuries.
The review brought out a significant gap between the number of hospitals empanelled for public health schemes and those signed up for PM Rahat. While more than 1,000 hospitals are empanelled under the State government's Aarogyasri health scheme, only 469 have enrolled under PM Rahat so far. The Chief Secretary asked District Collectors to take the necessary steps to bring the remaining eligible hospitals under the scheme, so that accident victims are not turned away from hospitals near the scene of a crash.
Officials were told that wider enrolment would expand access to emergency care across the State. Mr. Jaju said the scheme could channel at least ₹100 crore annually towards medical treatment of road accident victims, which would also help reduce the financial burden on the Aarogyasri scheme.
He, however, emphasised that hospitals providing treatment under PM Rahat would have to comply with the prescribed requirements. These include cooperation with police investigation and the completion of other procedural formalities relating to road accidents. Compliance with these conditions is necessary both to establish that a case qualifies under the scheme and to keep the claims process transparent.
The directive places the responsibility for closing the enrolment gap on district-level administrations, which are expected to identify eligible hospitals in their jurisdictions and persuade them to join the network. District Collectors, Superintendents of Police and transport officials were present at the review, reflecting the involvement of several departments in a scheme that spans health care, policing and road safety.
Road accidents often impose heavy and sudden costs on affected families, and the expense of emergency treatment is a recurring concern. A scheme that guarantees cashless treatment within the golden hour is intended to remove the hesitation that hospitals and victims' families may feel about immediately beginning treatment. The effectiveness of such a scheme, however, depends on how many hospitals actually participate and on whether the procedures for claiming reimbursement are clear and quick.
The gap between Aarogyasri empanelment and PM Rahat enrolment suggests that some hospitals that are otherwise equipped to provide the treatment have not yet joined the network. The reasons for this have not been spelled out in the review, and it is not clear how soon the remaining hospitals are expected to enrol. The Chief Secretary's instructions indicate that the State government sees wider participation as central to the scheme's success.
For accident victims, the practical test will be whether the hospital nearest to the site of a crash is part of the network and whether treatment begins without delay. Officials are expected to report progress on enrolment in the coming weeks.
