The Union Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, said that the government will work on a mission mode to eliminate Sickle Cell Anaemia from the country by 2047.

Highlighting the government’s efforts to provide better healthcare to the citizens during her budget speech, the Finance Minister said in the parliament on February 1, 2023, that the government proposes to set up 157 new nursing colleges will be established in the core locations of the existing 157 medical colleges established since 2014.

Facilities of Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) labs will be made available for private research and development teams to encourage collaborative work, she said.

The minister further announced that a new programme will also be unveiled to promote research and innovation in the pharmaceutical industry through centres of excellence.