VIJAYAWADA: The State Cabinet meeting, held under the chairmanship of Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu at the Secretariat on Thursday, decided to implement the universal health insurance scheme in the hybrid model under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY) and Dr NTR Vaidya Seva.
Around 5 crore people in the State will be provided quality health services under the scheme. Except those covered under the Employees’ Health Scheme, all the remaining people, including working journalists, will be covered under the scheme for up to Rs 25 lakh per year.
Disclosing the decisions taken by the Council of Ministers to mediapersons, Minister for Housing and Information and Public Relations Kolusu Parthasarathy said the insurance companies will provide health insurance from Rs 2.5 lakh to Rs 5 lakh, and the NTR Vaidya Seva Trust will provide health coverage from Rs 2.5 lakh to Rs 25 lakh to BPL families. Under the scheme, 3,257 health services will be covered.
As per the new proposal, the approvals will be given within six hours of admitting a patient in hospital, and a control room will be set up in NTR Trust, he explained.
It also approved the proposal to develop 10 new medical colleges at Adoni, Madanapalli, Markapuram, Pulivendula, Penugonda, Palacole, Amalapuram, Narsipatnam, Bapatla and Parvathiuram in PPP mode, and start admissions from 2027-28.
Land pooling for gold cluster at Mangalagiri approved
The other important Cabinet decisions included waiver of stamp duty for the lands allotted to educational institutions and hospitals in Amaravati, and regularisation of 59,375 unauthorised constructions as on August 31, 2025.
In addition, the Cabinet also decided to consider the proposal to increase the limit of high rise buildings to 24 metres against the present 18 metres.
The proposal of Municipal Administration and Urban Development Department for pooling 78.01 acres in Atmakuru of Mangalagiri mandal to implement the Mangalagiri Gold Cluster Scheme for the benefit of local goldsmiths was also approved.
The Cabinet also cleared the proposal to distribute 14.2 kg gas cylinders under the Deepam 2.0 scheme to benefit 23,912 people in Agency areas spread in 16 districts.
In addition, the Cabinet approved the investments cleared by the State Investment Promotion Board (SIPB). It also decided to allocate Rs 5.7 crore for repair and maintenance of 392 irrigation structures in the State.
The Cabinet also cleared the allotment of 26.70 acres of land for the electronics companies, which came forward to invest Rs 1,595 crore in Naidupet to provide employment to 2,168 people. It was also decided to reduce green tax on vehicles, and introduce a bill in the upcoming Assembly session, he said.