New Delhi: Gujarat Health Minister Praful Pansheriya represented the state at the 16th meeting of the Central Council for Health and Family Welfare (CCHFW) held in the national capital.

During the meeting, chaired by Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare J.P. Nadda, Pansheriya presented several key suggestions to the Central Government to further strengthen the health sector in Gujarat and across the country.

He urged the Centre to develop a comprehensive organ transplant facility at AIIMS Rajkot to make advanced organ transplant treatment more accessible to patients from the Saurashtra and Kutch regions. The availability of this facility would enable thousands of patients in western Gujarat to receive timely and quality treatment.

To strengthen action against food and drug adulteration, he recommended that the Central Government introduce stricter and more deterrent legal provisions by making necessary amendments to the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. He said stronger laws would help curb adulteration by enabling stringent action against those who compromise public health.

Pansheriya also expressed concern over the increasing and unchecked use of antibiotics in the country. He said excessive use of antibiotics is leading to the serious problem of antimicrobial resistance. Therefore, there is a need for an effective policy and strict implementation to ensure the responsible and regulated use of antibiotics across the country.

During the meeting, various digital health service platforms were launched under the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission to further accelerate digital transformation in the country’s healthcare sector. The operational guidelines for the ‘Anemia Mukt Bharat’ campaign were also released under the mission, giving a new impetus to digital transformation in health services. The initiative is seen as an important step towards building a malnutrition-free and healthier India. DeshGujarat