Jharkhand govt renames Atal Mohalla Clinic scheme; BJP opposes move

The Jharkhand government on Thursday approved the renaming of the Atal Mohalla Clinic scheme to ‘Urban Health Clinic’ under the Mukhyamantri Shahri Slum Swasthya Yojana.

The scheme, which was introduced to provide healthcare services in urban slum areas through mobile and fixed clinics, will continue to operate under the same structure. The department stated that the decision involves no financial implications and does not require legal consultation or interdepartmental approvals.

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The proposal has received the concurrence of the minister in charge and has been submitted to the cabinet secretariat for further action.

The Bharatiya Janata Party has opposed the decision.

In a statement issued in Ranchi, party spokesperson Ajay Sah criticised the government for removing the name of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee from the scheme. He said that the name change reflects a disregard for the legacy of the leader associated with the formation of the state.

He also stated that the government is free to initiate new schemes but should not alter the names of existing ones that have public recognition.

He referred to earlier instances in which names of institutions were changed and alleged that such steps serve political motives rather than public interest. The state government has not issued a formal response to the objections raised.

The scheme was originally approved in 2019–20 to serve approximately 3.73 lakh people in urban slum areas. It included the deployment of 25 mobile health clinics. The change in nomenclature follows a review of ongoing programmes under the state health plan.