The Chhattisgarh

Tag: Health

  • Departments lagging behind in spending budget: Finance Minister OP Choudhary wrote a letter to 5 ministers, requesting them to increase the pace of expenditure

    Raipur. Finance Minister OP Choudhary has written a letter to the ministers of various departments under the budget of the year 2024-25. The Finance Minister has written this letter on the low expenditure of the budget amount in the departments of five ministers. Finance Minister Choudhary has urged the ministers to increase the pace of expenditure. He has said that the budget is not being spent in the proportion in which it should have been spent.

    Finance Minister Chaudhary has clarified in a letter to the ministers that targets have been set for capital expenditure for each quarter as per the prescribed criteria of the budget and capital expenditure as per this gives impetus to the economy along with continuity in work. The Finance Minister has requested that the fulfillment of budget targets can be ensured by preparing an action plan and through regular supervision. This will help in achieving the targets on time and will have a positive impact towards overall development.

    Finance Minister Chaudhary has written a letter to Home Minister Vijay Sharma and said that in the budget of the year 2024-25, as against the provisions made for capital expenditure in the budget related to your department, till the month of August, much less expenditure has been made as compared to last year. Capital expenditure of Rs 171 crore has been made in the Panchayat and Rural Development Department and Rs 31 crore in the Home Department. As per the expenditure limit fixed for the departments by the Finance Department, 40 percent (25 percent in the first quarter and 15 percent in the second quarter) is to be spent in the first six months. It is necessary to have continuous expenditure and regular supervision in the works approved under the capital expenditure schemes in the department. Higher capital expenditure has a qualitative effect on the creation of jobs and accelerating the economy.

    He has written in the letter that timely payment to construction companies / contractors for construction works under capital expenditure ensures completion of works within the stipulated time period. This also improves the quality of works and also reduces the tender rates of works in future. Therefore, please instruct your subordinates to pay all the regular dues pending till 31 July 2024 by 30 September 2024.

    At the same time, Finance Minister Chaudhary has said in a letter to Agriculture Minister Ramvichar Netam that in the budget of the year 2024-25, as against the provisions made for capital expenditure in the budget related to your department, till the month of August, much less expenditure has been made as compared to last year. Capital expenditure of Rs 20 crore has been made in Tribal Development Department, Backward Classes and Minority Development Department and Rs 18 crore in Agriculture Development and Farmers Welfare Department. As per the expenditure limit fixed for the departments by the Finance Department, 40 percent (25 percent in the first quarter and 15 percent in the second quarter) is to be spent in the first six months. It is necessary to have continuous expenditure and regular supervision in the works approved under the capital expenditure schemes in the department. Higher capital expenditure has a qualitative effect on the creation of jobs and accelerating the economy.

    At the same time, Finance Minister Chaudhary has written a letter to Forest Minister Kedar Kashyap and said that in the budget of the year 2024-25, as against the provisions made for capital expenditure in the budget related to your department, till the month of August, much less expenditure has been made as compared to last year. Capital expenditure of Rs 655 crore has been made in the Water Resources Department and Rs 80 lakh in the Forest and Climate Change Department. As per the expenditure limit fixed for the departments by the Finance Department, 40 percent (25 percent in the first quarter and 15 percent in the second quarter) is to be spent in the first six months. It is necessary to have continuous expenditure and regular supervision in the works approved under the capital expenditure schemes in the department.

    Finance Minister OP Chaudhary has written a letter to Urban Administration Minister Arun Saw and said that in the budget of the year 2024-25, much less expenditure has been made in the budget related to your department till the month of August as compared to last year. Capital expenditure has been made of Rs 1320 crore in the Public Works Department, Rs 220 crore in the Public Health Engineering Department, Rs 348 crore in the Urban Administration Department and Rs 2.29 crore in the Law and Legislative Affairs Department. It is necessary to have continuous expenditure and regular supervision in the works approved under the capital expenditure schemes in the department.

    At the same time, in a letter written to Health Minister Shyambihari Jaiswal, Finance Minister OP Choudhary has said that in the budget of 2024-25, as against the provisions made for capital expenditure in the budget related to your department, till August, much less expenditure has been made as compared to last year. Capital expenditure of Rs 91 crore has been made in the Public Health and Family Welfare Department and Rs 15 lakh in the Medical Education Department. As per the expenditure limit fixed for the departments by the Finance Department, 40 percent (25 percent in the first quarter and 15 percent in the second quarter) is to be spent in the first six months. It is necessary to have continuous expenditure and regular supervision in the works approved under the capital expenditure schemes in the department. Higher capital expenditure has a qualitative effect on the creation of jobs and accelerating the economy.

  • AI Can Give Psychological First Aid, Curb Mental Health Burden In India: Expert |

    New Delhi: Artificial Intelligence (AI) can be an effective tool in providing psychological first aid, which may help curb the rising burden of mental health issues in India, said Samir Parikh, Consultant Psychiatrist and Chairperson, Fortis Healthcare on Wednesday.

    Speaking to IANS, the mental health expert noted that AI may not only boost cost-effective care but also reach the masses, as niche experts are fewer in this sector. “The prevalence of mental illnesses and mental health concerns are very high. But the number of experts in the domain is very low. And these experts are also disproportionately distributed,” Samir said.

    He noted that the number of experts dwindles, beyond metro cities, in Tier – III, and IV, and even further while moving towards district, and rural levels. According to the latest data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, about 60 to 70 million people in India have been reported to suffer from common and severe mental disorders.

    “India’s mental health burden is estimated at $2-3 billion with about one in every eight people estimated to be suffering from a mental health disorder in some form. Hence, mental wellness solutions are pertinent, especially in a society like India where mental health is deeply stigmatised leading to lack of awareness,” said Samir while launching ‘Adayu Mindfulness’– a dedicated vertical for comprehensive mental health care at Fortis, in collaboration with United We Care and Adayu.

    “I do believe that digital India and AI interventions are the way forward for a country like ours, as well as for a large part of the developing world where we need to ensure that cost-effective and highest outreach is needed for mental health care, given the fact that experts are less,” he added.

    But when it comes to mental health, is AI on par with humans?

    “AI is not substituting clinical expertise, rather it is supporting,” Samir said, noting that AI can help in screening and help understand whether a person must see a psychologist or a psychiatrist.
    “There are some people who will have distress, some will require a bit of assistance and help, but not expert intervention in terms of therapy. This help could be about self-correction, basic guidance, some self-help, some do-it-yourself, some educator videos or content, but given by reliable sources, which also come from a clinically evidence-based background.

    “So psychological first aid can be given. AI can listen, give some education, help people understand what to do, provide lifestyle-related support, thought-related support which means helping with positive thinking affirmations, among others,” said the doctor.

    At the same time, it can also screen the patients and rule out the presence of a condition that requires an expert intervention. “So AI can help in psychological therapy, guidance and it can also help in the continuity of treatment and compliance as well as overall relapse management.”

    “Available 24/7 in a scientific evidence-based manual, and under the supervision of experts, AI is not about substituting or being at par with human support, rather it will work as an adjunct as a support system,” the doctor said.