Shimla, 29 June, 2025-To assess the development of any society, community, state or nation, one must thoroughly examine the state of its education and health systems. The one that excels in these sectors, integrates modern technologies and embraces innovation are likely to be the most powerful and resilient economy of the future. Investments made on transforming crucial sectors like education and healthcare benefit generations for decades.

With this in mind, Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, while ensuring the judicious use of the state's resources, has prioritized the modernization of key sectors like health and education. Given the challenging geographical landscape in Himachal Pradesh, delivering healthcare services to people in remote villages requires extraordinary commitment and dedication. Within a brief tenure of two and a half years, the government has taken various decisions and launched revolutionary schemes, resulting in widespread improvement and expansion of state-of-the-art healthcare services across the state.

Currently, the state government is delivering quality healthcare to citizens at their doorstep through 2,926 government health institutions across Himachal. These include six medical colleges, three zonal hospitals, nine regional hospitals, 92 civil hospitals, 107 community health centers, 585 primary health centers and 2,116 sub-health centers, among others.

The government has its focus on need-based expansion of the capacities of the health institutions across the state, including remote areas. Civil Hospital Kaza in Lahaul-Spiti district has been upgraded from a 20-bed to a 50-bed facility. Civil hospitals in Sujanpur, district Hamirpur, Sunni, district Shimla, and Haroli, district Una, have been upgraded from 50 to 100 beds. The ESIC Hospital in Gagret, district Una, has been notified as a Civil Hospital.

Furthermore, new block medical offices have been notified at Baddi, district Solan, Jai Singhpur and Dehra, district Kangra. In Sirmaur district, three new sub-health centers have been opened at Thoda Jakhal, Uthari, and Naya Pajor, and two new primary health centers have been set up at Kotapab and Halah. Another PHC has been opened in Mamlig village of Basheel gram panchayat in Sirmaur. The PHC at Diggal in Solan district has been upgraded to a Community Health Center.

As a result of this expansion and quality assurance in healthcare, from January 2023 to December 2024, the Health Department provided services to approximately 3.27 crore OPD patients and 37.5 lakh IPD patients.

To ensure uniform access to quality healthcare across Himachal, Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has announced the opening of one model health institution in each of the 68 Assembly constituencies, with an exception of two in Lahaul-Spiti. Most of these facilities are already functional, and the process is being expedited in the remaining areas.

Each of these 69 model health institutions will offer 134 types of diagnostic tests and will be staffed with six specialists, one specialist each in Medicine, Surgery, Gynaecology, Paediatrics, Anesthesiology and Radiology. The institutions will be equipped with sufficient medical staff, modern infrastructure, ultrasound and digital X-ray facilities. Provision has been made to install MRI and CT scan machines in selective institutions in a phased manner, and procurement of machinery is in the final stages.

In the two-and-a-half years of its tenure, up to March 30, 2025, the state government has recruited 185 Medical Officers, 130 Staff Nurses, six Lab Assistants, 67 Medical Lab Technicians, 45 Pharmacist Officers, 61 Operation Theatre Assistants, seven Physiotherapists and posts in various other categories.

Additionally, the state has created 491 new posts across various categories, including 221 Medical Officers, 23 Ward Sisters, six Radiographers, 14 Lab Technicians (Grade-II), 213 Operation Theatre Assistants, 11 Pharmacists, three Block Medical Officers and four Physiotherapists.

For fiscal year 2025-26, the government has earmarked Rs. 1,730 crore for procuring modern medical equipment for all medical colleges, 69 civil hospitals, regional hospitals, and Community Health Centres. Dialysis facilities are being provided in 20 Adarsh Swasthya Sansthaan and would be set up in remaining 49 institutions with an estimated cost of 41.62 crore. Similarly blood storage units would be established in 11 institutions.

Advanced diagnostic facilities such as MRI machines at IGMC Shimla, AIIMS Chamiyana Shimla and the medical colleges in Hamirpur and Nerchowk, and a PET scan facility at IGMC Shimla, are also being introduced.

The government is also working on the ‘Mukhyamantri Vridhjan Dekhbhal Yojana’ to provide doorstep healthcare services to senior citizens aged 70 and above.

Due to these consistent efforts, Himachal Pradesh is witnessing a transformation and modernization of its healthcare sector. In the near future, the state is poised to emerge as a provider of world-class medical services and a model in healthcare excellence, with its health journey likely to be emulated by others across the country and the globe. Himachal is also set to become a prime destination for health tourism.