Panjab Launches Universal Health Insurance; Stray Cattle Gravely Injures Singer

Panjab government has launched a universal health insurance scheme that ensures free health treatment of up to USD 11K per family. On 23 Sep, the pilot scheme was rolled out in Tarn Taran and Barnala districts. Panjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann said, 'People will have to come here with the copies of their voter identification card, AADHAR (identity) card, and passports, submit them along with the registration form, to be eligible for getting the free health insurance.' Sehat (health) cards will be issued to them. All government run health institutions are already on board for the scheme, around 500 private hospitals have also been empaneled and will give free cashless insurance to those who enrol for the scheme. 'In a year, irrespective of the number of people in the family seeking treatment, each family can get treatment for 2K ailments,' said Mann. Mann also announced that they were scaling up the number of Aam Aadmi (common people, named after the ruling political Aam Aadmi Party) clinics from the present 881 to 1K. Meanwhile, on 27 Sep, 36-year-old Panjabi singer and actor Rajvir Singh Jawanda was critically injured in a road accident near Baddi, Himachal Pradesh (HP). The singer’s motorcycle collided with stray cattle that suddenly came onto the road, leading to a crash. Jawanda was first taken to the Civil Hospital, Chandigarh where doctors confirmed that he had suffered severe head and spine injuries and went into cardiac arrest. He was later referred to Fortis Hospital, Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar and is on advanced life support. Singer Resham Singh Anmol raised critical questions on the stray cattle menace in HP but also in Panjab. 'These stray animals have destroyed lakhs of homes. Toll tax is collected, even cow cess tax is taken—where does that money go?' In 2023, Panjab had 450 shelters which housed nearly 400K stray cattle. However, nearly 125K cattle still roam the streets causing up to 120 deaths a year.