Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Monday dedicated 75 'Aam Aadmi Clinics' to the people of Punjab to mark 75 years of India's independence and said they will be a stepping stone to revamping the state's healthcare system.
After hoisting the national flag at a state-level function at Guru Nanak Stadium , Bhagwant Mann inaugurated a clinic at a separate event and said the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has fulfilled one of its poll promises.
Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Monday dedicated 75 'Aam Aadmi Clinics' to the people of Punjab to mark 75 years of India's independence and said they will be a stepping stone to revamping the state's healthcare system.
After hoisting the national flag at a state-level function at Guru Nanak Stadium here, Mann inaugurated a clinic at a separate event and said the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has fulfilled one of its poll promises.
A total of 75 'Aam Aadmi Clinics' were inaugurated across the state. "On this historic day, the AAP government has dedicated these clinics to the people to ensure that they have access to quality healthcare services without paying a single penny" Mann said at the clinic inauguration.
He said these clinics will be opened in every nook and corner of the state. In big villages, two clinics will be opened for people's convenience. The clinics will offer around 100 types of clinical tests for free, besides providing medicines to patients at zero cost. Each of these clinics will have four staff members, including an MBBS doctor and a laboratory technician.
"Today, we dedicate 75 mohalla clinics to mark 75 years of independence," Mann told the media. With this, the AAP government has fulfilled one of its major poll promises, he said.
"We had promised to set up mohalla clinics in Punjab. The experiment of setting up such clinics in Delhi has been very successful," he added. On the Opposition's criticism over converting Sewa Kendras into 'Aam Aadmi Clinics', Mann said these buildings were in shambles and they were converted into clinics after renovation.
"We are fulfilling our promises," he reiterated. Mann said these clinics will be a stepping stone to revamping the healthcare system in Punjab.
He expressed hope that 90 per cent of the people will get treated at these clinics, thereby reducing the burden on hospitals. Only serious patients with major ailments will be referred to hospitals, he said.
He said people will be able to book appointments for these clinics online. The chief minister also spoke about his government's other initiatives such as 'One MLA, One Pension' and free electricity.
"After the AAP government was formed, we started taking decisions from day one. Now the results of these decisions have started showing," he said.
"The 'One MLA, One Pension' legislation has been enacted. We spoke about giving 300 units of free electricity from July 1. In around 20 days, 51 lakh households will get zero electricity bills," he said.
(With PTI Inputs)