As Bihar’s healthcare system crumbled and doctor shortage persisted, state failed to spend its full health budget for years, CAG finds
According to the CAG, "between the financial years of 2016-17 and 2021-22, the state spent only Rs 48,047 crore (69 per cent) of total budget provisions of Rs 69,730 crore"
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This event builds on the findings of Project Blossom, an MUHS initiative that tackled critical health challenges in Vidarbha's tribal regions. (File Photo)The Bihar government hasn’t been able to spend 31 percent of its total health budget between 2016-17 and 2021-22, the Comptroller and Auditor General of India said in its latest report on the state’s public health, basic infrastructure and services. The figures, presented in a report that was tabled in the assembly on November 28, has drawn criticism from the Opposition.
According to the CAG, “between the financial years of 2016-17 and 2021-22, the state spent only Rs 48,047 Crore (69 per cent) of total budget provisions of Rs 69,730.83 crore”.
The report also highlighted some other important aspects, such as massive shortage of doctors. According to the report, Bihar is still short of 66,775 doctors — 53 percent less than the number recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) and 32 per cent less than the national average. The WHO recommends 1,24,919 doctors for a population of 12.49 crore (as of March 2022), the report says.
“However, only 58,144 allopathic doctors were made available in the state as of January 2022, which is 53% less than the WHO’s recommended norms and 32% less than the national average,” it says.
Likewise, there’s also a shortage of nurses, paramedical staff and essential medicines in government hospitals. While the shortage of nurses ranged from 18 percent (Patna) to 75 percent (Purnia), that of paramedics ranged from 45 percent (in Jamui) to 90 percent (East Champaran).
Shortage of essential medicines ranged from 21-65 percent in Out-Patient Departments (OPD) and 34-83 percent for those admitted at hospitals between 2016 and 2022.
During this period, 846 (44 percent) of the state’s 1,932 public health centres (PHCs) and additional public health centres (APHCs) didn’t function round-the-clock. Of it, 566 (29 percent) PHCs and APHCs had maternity services and 266 of them (14 percent) had operation theatres.
The CAG has made as many as 31 recommendations to improve health services in the state.
The Opposition Rashtriya Janata Dal has attacked the state government for the underutilised health budget. Significantly, the RJD was part of the Nitish Kumar-led state government from August 2022 to January 2024, when the chief minister broke the alliance to go back to the NDA.
“The health sector needs special focus. The period during which RJD also shared power (2016-2017) shows that health funds were not used but the bulk of responsibility rests with the NDA government,” RJD spokesperson Mrityunjay Tiwari told The Indian Express.
Congress spokesperson Gyan Ranjan Gupta said leaving health funds unused “shows inefficacy of the system, especially when we are too short of doctors, support staff and medical equipment”.
However, senior BJP leader and health minister Mangal Pandey defended it saying: “The state government has been trying its best to ensure that its budget is optimised but some funds could not be used because of procedural delays”.
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