The Bengal administration has started preparations for the implementation of the Centre’s flagship health insurance scheme, Ayushman Bharat, in the state ahead of the swearing-in of the new BJP government on Saturday.

Kolkata: The Bengal administration has started preparations for the implementation of the Centre’s flagship health insurance scheme, Ayushman Bharat, in the state ahead of the swearing-in of the new BJP government on Saturday.Sources said a high-level meeting was held on Friday to discuss the issue.Senior officials of the state health department attended the meeting, while officials of the Union Health Ministry participated through video conference.According to sources, the discussion focused on the modalities of implementing the scheme in the state and the process of distributing Ayushman cards among the beneficiaries. Other operational issues related to the implementation of this health insurance scheme were also raised during the meeting.Sources said state health department officials recently held a meeting with representatives of the National Health Authority, the apex body responsible for implementing the scheme.The Center is also set to release Rs 2,700 crore in pending funds to West Bengal under the Jal Jeevan Mission, the Government of India’s plan to provide tap water to every household.Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced at election rallies that if the BJP comes to power in Bengal, the government will approve the implementation of Ayushman Bharat in the state in its first cabinet meeting, a major policy shift after years of resistance from the previous Trinamool Congress government.The Mamata Banerjee cabinet did not allow the scheme to be implemented in Bengal, as the state already had its own health insurance scheme, Swasthya Sathi.Sources also said that, a meeting will soon be held between the Secretary of the State Public Health Engineering Department and the Secretary of the Union Jal Shakti Ministry regarding the Jal Jeevan Mission to finalize the process. An MoU is expected to be signed soon between the Center and the state, following which the dues will be released. The state government has already submitted a detailed report to the Center regarding the pending allocation and the progress made in providing household tap water connections under the scheme.Of the Rs 24,645 crore the state received under the scheme between 2019-20 and 2023-24, only 53% was utilized.This issue remains a major point of contention between the Center and the Trinamool government. The Center had objected to the branding and implementation norms under the scheme and alleged that the central guidelines were not being followed properly by the state.Although the state later agreed to follow the norms, the release of funds remained stalled for a long time.