Naidu launches expanded Sanjeevani healthcare project in Chittoor

Tirupati: In a decisive step towards tech-driven public health and preventive medicine, Andhra Pradesh chief minister Chandrababu Naidu officially launched the comprehensive expansion of the ambitious Sanjeevani Healthcare Project at Kandrika village in Yadamarri mandal of Chittoor district on Saturday.Addressing a large gathering at the Praja Vedika public meeting along with Chittoor MP Daggumalla Prasad Rao, Chittoor district collector Sumit Kumar and Puthalapattu MLA Dr K Murali Mohan, Naidu announced that this initiative, which marks a significant shift from traditional healthcare to a comprehensive digital public health operative system, will be rolled out statewide on Aug 15.The Sanjeevani initiative is designed as a citizen wellness mission functioning on three foundational pillars: Preventive, predictive, and curative healthcare. A major highlight of the rollout is the planned introduction of AI-enabled doctor services, which will allow citizens to access virtual medical consultations directly from their homes.Describing the project as a milestone that transitions the state from illness to wellness, Naidu emphasised that health remains the ultimate priority above wealth or power, particularly for families facing severe financial distress due to skyrocketing out-of-pocket medical expenses.Operationally, the infrastructure is built upon a cutting-edge digital nerve centre that seamlessly integrates patient records across primary health centres and major hospitals. This ensures a unified, secure database allowing doctors to continuously monitor individual digital health histories, prescriptions, and diagnostics via a dedicated Sanjeevani card.The govt has backed this massive rollout with an approved expenditure of Rs 162 crore to deploy 904 mobile medical units tailored to service remote and rural pockets.Furthermore, the initiative guarantees the doorstep delivery of 74 distinct types of medical diagnostic tests, with instructions issued to officials to transmit the reports directly to beneficiaries via WhatsApp within 48 hours of testing.Asserting that the NDA alliance govt was giving top priority to education and healthcare in the state, CM pointed out that Rs 19,305 crore has been allocated to the health sector in this year’s budget, and Andhra Pradesh secured the highest health grant of Rs 2,601 crore from the 15th Finance Commission.Under the universal health policy, he said every citizen — regardless of economic background — will receive healthcare benefits worth Rs 2.5 lakh, while treatment costs up to Rs 25 lakh will be covered through NTR Vaidya Seva and the chief minister’s relief fund.Launching a scathing attack on the YSRCP for trying to hoodwink the attention of the people from the massive transformation of the state ever since the TDP-led NDA alliance came back to power in the state, Naidu referred to the YSRCP as a Goddali party, which was harmful for the state, whether it is in the ruling or in the opposition.