BS RAWAT
NEW DELHI: The Indian Government has approved the continuation of five schemes under the 'Umbrella Scheme for Family Welfare and Other Health Interventions' during the Fourteenth Finance Commission period 2017-18 to 2019-20, an official statement has said.

The decision was taken at a meeting of the Union Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi.

An overall outlay of Rs 2381.84 crore for the scheme will be spent during the Fourteenth Finance Commission period and would be funded 100% by the Central Government Budgetary support, the statement said.

Components of social marketing of contraceptives and free supply of contraceptives are specifically targeted towards low income group people. However, the overall scheme is not restricted to any particular group or category and has a mandate to cover the population throughout India, it said.

The five schemes in the approval list are crucial to attaining the goals and objectives laid out in National Health Policy (NHP) 2017, and international commitments in the form of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The Swastha Nagrik Abhiyan (SNA) scheme has a very ambitious target of improving health seeking behaviour of the people through increased awareness and improved health services.

Health Surveys and Health Research, the other components, would help in keeping a tab on the progress of entire set of health schemes run by the Central government, assisting in timely course corrections, the statement reads.