CM Yogi announces Rs 2,000croreAI Mission in healthcare services

Lucknow: Announcing the launch of UP Artificial Intelligence Mission (UP-AIM), Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday said that the state will set aside Rs 2,000 crore for the mission to develop the state as a leader in the use of AI in healthcare services.Speaking during the inauguration of two-day AI and Health Innovation conference, Yogi said, "Aligned with the goals set in India AI Mission, UP will now launch UP AIM (UP AI Mission). The state will set aside Rs 2,000 crore for the mission, to be implemented in a phased manner.""Under UP AI Mission, the state will be developed as a national leader in the use of AI in healthcare services," he said. Addressing delegates from various states and experts from NITI Aayog, National Health Authority, World Health Organisation (WHO), Google and World Bank, Yogi said AI had great potential to bring about a positive impact on people's lives.The CM said that AI should remain human-driven, not the other way around, and that maintaining balance would be critical in future."When technology is guided by compassion, policy is driven by innovation and governance rests on trust, development becomes inclusive and the future gets secured," he said.Citing the public distribution system as an example, he said, "When we formed the govt in 2017, problems related to the public distribution system formed the biggest chunk of public grievance. We rolled out a strategy in which all the 80,000 fair price shops in the state were searched to weed out fake ration card holders. Real change came only after the introduction of EPOS (electronic point of sale) which put an end to the problems. Today, there are zero complaints.""More than 1.06 crore beneficiaries have gained from tech-leap," he said, referring to direct benefit transfer under various schemes.On healthcare, he said that technology has great potential in public health. "AI can make disease prevention and prediction a reality," he said.Calling for a proactive approach, he said that AI was emerging as a powerful instrument to transform governance. "To ensure that everyone benefits from it, there is a need to embrace a proactive approach rather than a reactive one," Yogi said.He said AI could significantly enhance accuracy and effectiveness of health programmes, adding that real-time data could support informed decision-making, stronger policies, and better outcomes.Citing elimination of encephalitis as a major achievement, he said, "The disease once claimed the lives of 1,200-1,500 children annually but now there are zero deaths in the state." He said Uttar Pradesh had also made significant progress in reducing maternal and infant mortality rates and improving institutional deliveries."For tuberculosis, AI-based tools are being used to identify patients, monitor treatment, and map high-risk areas effectively. Beyond healthcare, AI is also being applied in policing, agriculture, education, and other sectors," he said.Yogi added that he was confident that the conference would deliver practical solutions, pilot projects and a time-bound action plan to strengthen healthcare delivery to the last person in the line.He also listed UP govt initiatives to promote technology innovation in healthcare, including those using artificial intelligence.