New Delhi is witnessing a fresh political showdown over healthcare services. Aam Aadmi Party’s Delhi unit chief Saurabh Bharadwaj has unleashed a scathing attack on the current Delhi government, accusing it of rebranding existing Mohalla Clinics and old dispensaries as ‘Ayushman Arogya Mandirs’ to claim unearned credit.
Bharadwaj pointed out that the government boasts of launching 370 Arogya Mandirs, but demands transparency on how many are genuinely new facilities. ‘The Chief Minister must reveal how many of these are operating from fresh buildings versus merely renamed pre-existing health centers,’ he asserted.
He raised pointed questions: How many were formerly AAP’s Mohalla Clinics? How many were state dispensaries or MCD health units? Instead of building new infrastructure, the government is allegedly repackaging achievements from the previous Arvind Kejriwal administration to steal the spotlight.
Most of these ‘new’ mandirs, according to Bharadwaj, function from the same premises with the identical doctors, pharmacists, and staff. He further alleged that CM Rekha Gupta promised job security to Mohalla Clinic staff, only to terminate several employees later, plunging families into financial distress and eroding governmental trust.
‘Delhi’s public knows the truth,’ Bharadwaj declared. ‘Name changes don’t improve healthcare reality.’ He urged the CM to release detailed figures distinguishing new builds from rebranded ones, emphasizing that true progress lies in expansion, not cosmetic alterations.
This controversy underscores ongoing tensions in Delhi’s healthcare politics, with opposition parties questioning the sustainability and authenticity of the government’s health initiatives amid rising public expectations.