
Provide safety gear to all sanitation workers before monsoon, says minister
The MCD has been tasked with fast-tracking the survey in unauthorized colonies, using sanitary inspectors to identify manual scavengers. All departments were also directed to ensure that workers are brought under the Ayushman Bharat health insurance scheme.
Singh noted that the State Level Survey Committee for the identification of manual scavengers is in its final stages of formation. A meeting chaired by Chief Minister Rekha Gupta is expected soon. He also urged District Magistrates to clear all pending compensation claims on a priority basis. The minister criticised the lack of action by previous administrations, despite a 2014 notification on manual scavenging.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


New Indian Express
3 hours ago
- New Indian Express
49 rabies cases in 2025; over 65,000 stray dogs sterilised in six months: MCD
NEW DELHI: Over 65,000 stray dogs have been sterilised and vaccinated over the past six months as part of efforts to control the stray dog population and curb the spread of rabies, according to official data from the MCD. During the same period, the capital has reported 49 rabies cases and 35,198 incidents of animal bites between January and June. To address these issues, an equal number of anti-rabies vaccines (ARV) were administered during this period, an official said. In comparison, the civic body has projected that 97,994 dogs will be sterilised and vaccinated between April 2024 and December 2025. This follows previous years where 79,959 dogs were sterilised in 2023-2024 and 59,076 in 2022-2023, indicating a consistent increase in efforts. Officials noted that the civic body is focused on enhancing the efficiency and capacity of the sterilisation network amid rising public concerns over stray dog attacks in various parts of the city. To further tackle the issue, a meeting of the sub-committee of MCD was held on Thursday to provide relief to the residents from the growing problem of stray dogs. It was decided in the meeting that in order to speed up the campaign for dog sterilisation, fresh dialogue would be established with the currently engaged non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and other capable institutions would also be connected to this process. In addition, other non-governmental organisations would also be invited. It was further decided to seek the help of the Delhi Government and the Central Government to remove the rules that are coming in the way of providing relief from the problem of stray dogs and that the program of dog sterilisation would be planned constituency-wise. In the previous meeting of the Standing Committee, several councillors had raised the issue of stray dogs. Meanwhile, CM Rekha Gupta directed officials to treat the matter not merely as an administrative task but as a social responsibility. She stressed the need for a comprehensive and humane approach to address the crisis.


NDTV
9 hours ago
- NDTV
AAP, BJP Play Blame Game Over Rising Dengue, Malaria Cases In Delhi
A blame game has started in Delhi between the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the BJP-led Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) on Friday over the rising cases of vector-borne diseases in the national capital. Both are trading accusations, while health experts warn of a potential surge if timely interventions are not implemented. To put the Rekha Gupta-led BJP government in the dock, the AAP has alleged that malaria cases in Delhi have broken a 10-year record. According to official figures, Delhi has reported 277 dengue cases, 124 malaria infections, and 18 cases of chikungunya so far this monsoon season. AAP Trains Guns At MCD AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj said the rising disease numbers reflected larger issues with civic infrastructure. "Malaria cases in Delhi have broken a 10-year record. This isn't just a number, it's a symptom of how deeply mismanaged the city is," he said during a press conference on Friday. Pointing to the instances of waterlogging in Connaught Place, Sadar Bazar, and Janpath, Mr. Bharadwaj said, "BJP ministers repeatedly claim there's no waterlogging, but the rising malaria cases tell a different story. The AAP has also said it will raise the matter in the Delhi Assembly session on August 4. मलेरिया के आंकड़े पिछले 10 साल में सबसे ज़्यादा‼️ BJP की सरकार ने कहा था कि इस बार दिल्ली में जलभराव नहीं होगा लेकिन इस बार CP और सदर बाजार समेत तमाम जगहों पर जलभराव हुआ लेकिन बीजेपी सरकार ने मानने से ही इनकार कर दिया। अब दिल्ली में मलेरिया के आंकड़े पिछले 10 साल के आंकड़े को… — Saurabh Bharadwaj (@Saurabh_MLAgk) August 1, 2025 Mayor Hits Back Responding to the allegations, Delhi Mayor Sardar Raja Iqbal Singh defended the MCD's efforts and questioned AAP's performance during its tenure at the municipal level. AAP ran the MCD for two-and-a-half years. Did they eradicate mosquito breeding? They didn't even release full data on dengue and malaria cases then," Mr Singh said. He also highlighted the civic body's recent initiatives to prevent mosquito breeding and vector-borne diseases, which include spraying at 49,718 locations, conducting 8.2 lakh home inspections, and issuing over 5,600 legal notices for mosquito breeding violations. "We're acting on a war footing. These baseless accusations by AAP are just a political diversion," Mr Singh said, adding that AAP leaders have not been active participants in health discussions. Between Politics and Public Health, Residents Want Solutions As political back and forth continues, residents say they're more concerned about on-ground response than party positions. "We don't want daily updates on blame. We want clean streets, regular spraying, and health camps," said a resident in West Delhi.
&w=3840&q=100)

Business Standard
a day ago
- Business Standard
Over 790 mn ABHA accounts created, 650 mn health records linked: Centre
As of July 28, 2025, a total of 79.71 crore accounts for the Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA) have been created, and around 65.09 crore health records have been linked to it, Minister of State for Health Prataprao Jadhav told the Lok Sabha on Friday. In a written reply, he stated that around 4.17 lakh health facilities have been registered in the Health Facility Registry (HFR), and approximately 6.76 lakh healthcare professionals are registered on it. The Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) has been launched with an aim to create an online platform enabling the interoperability of health data within the health ecosystem to form a longitudinal electronic health record of every citizen, Jadhav said. He clarified that details regarding whether health facilities are located in urban or rural areas are not captured during the registration process of the HFR. Currently, there are 3,20,973 healthcare facilities equipped with ABDM-enabled software, and the number of districts hosting these facilities is 771. To address areas with poor internet connectivity, the ABDM includes provisions for assisted modes. For example, an offline mode for creating ABHA accounts has been implemented to facilitate registration where internet access or hardware availability is lacking. The National Health Authority, which oversees the implementation of ABDM, is collaborating closely with states to ensure effective rollout of the mission, the minister noted. A public dashboard [ has been set up to track the progress of the different KPIs [key performance indicators] associated with ABDM. This dashboard has drill-downs to the state, district and hospital levels and therefore, helps in the assessment of the implementation of ABDM. The government has taken various steps to ensure that the benefits of the mission reach every citizen. The digital health ecosystem created by ABDM supports continuity of care across primary, secondary and tertiary healthcare in a seamless manner, Jadhav mentioned. It also enhances the availability of healthcare services, particularly in remote and rural areas, through various technological interventions such as telemedicine. The eSanjeevani is a national telemedicine service operational in 36 states and union territories (UTs), aimed at achieving universal health coverage (UHC), Jadhav stated in his written reply. It is implemented in two variants: eSanjeevani AB-HWC and Ayushman Arogya Mandir, a provider-to-provider telemedicine platform, and eSanjeevani OPD, a patient-to-provider telemedicine platform which operates on a hub-and-spoke model. As of 28 July 2025, eSanjeevani has served over 39 crore patients. The service has been operationalised through 1,34,029 Ayushman Arogya Mandirs (erstwhile health and wellness centres) which serve as spokes, supported by 17,568 hubs and over 719 online OPDs staffed by over 2,24,528 doctors, medical specialists, super-specialists, and health workers engaged in telemedicine, he said. Furthermore, to address the network connectivity issues, state governments are collaborating with telecom providers to extend broadband coverage to the Ayushman Arogya Mandir sub-health centre level, Jadhav added.