The National Rural Health Mission, the flagship programme of the UPA government rolled out in 2005 to provide accessible, affordable, accountable, effective and reliable healthcare facilities in the rural areas, especially to the poor and vulnerable sections of the society, fails to meet the targets in the state of Haryana.
According to the performance audit for the year ended March 31, 2009, 19 per cent of the available funds remained unspent due to deficiencies in the completion of household and facility survey, non-preparation of perspective and annual plans and lack of planning as well as monitoring.
The scheme was launched in Haryana in April 2005. The NRHM was centrally sponsored up to 2006-07 and on cost sharing basis between Centre (85 per cent) and State (15 percent) for the 11th plan period 2007-12.
The above table explains that only 81 per cent of the funds available were spent. The funds available remained unspent as the budget was prepared by the State Health and Family Welfare Society (SHFWS) without any input from District Health anf Family Welfare Society (DHFWS) and sub-district health centres.
The audit department found that even the districts and blocks were not informed about the availability of funds well in advance for prior planning.
The district perspective plans were prepared in only 9 out of 20 districts and the annual action plan was not prepared in a single district.
The Annual Public Health Report was not published in any district that restricted the dissemination of information to local communities which were to be involved in the planning and monitoring of activities.
The report compiled by the Principal Accountant General (Audit) of Haryana says that the untied and annual maintenance grants remained unspent with village health and sanitation committees, community health centres and primary health centres.
The report also contains that the against the target of construction of 9 community health centres, 79 primary health centres and 44 sub-centres (village level) no health centre was constructed.
A shortage of 61 per cent of doctors and 50 per cent of the para-medical staff was observed in the test checked community health centres by the auditors.
The audit report says that the lack of planning had a cascading effect on the implementation of mission. No district level and sub-district level budgets were prepared with the result that funds were allocated on the receipt from government of India without any reference to requirement that resulted in unspent funds.
The infrastructure development, according to the report was far behind schedule. There was no augmentation of diagonistic and clinical facilities as per Indian Public Health Standards (IPHS).
The report says that the targets for many components under various healthcare programmes could not be achieved with some of the programmes suffering from lack of basic medicines or vaccines and improvement in key health indicators till March 2008. Referring to the past performance the report said that the targets set to be met by 2010 were unlikely to be achieved.
