Karnataka is now gearing up to implement the National Urban Health Mission (NUHM) in the first week of March. As part of the initiative, 13 Urban Public Health Centres including eight in Bengaluru will be brought under the scheme with the aim to prevent spread of communicable and non communicable diseases. The thrust for the NUHM was undertaken under the 12th Five Year Plan with a budget allocation of Rs.30,000 crore which ceases to exist under the new government and replaced with Niti Aayog.

The state has now opened the National Health Mission building which indicates the efforts towards the implementation of the NUHM in Karnataka. The move to unveil the second phase of the Mission is on the cards as 18 cities have commenced the work to help provide the services.

Under the initiative, the thrust is to provide a systematic healthcare access and vector control, besides sanitation and clean drinking water.

The objective of the Mission which is different from the National Rural Health Mission is to address the healthcare needs of the slum dwellers and vulnerable section of the population in the urban areas. They are migrants coming to the city from the rural areas to seek employment opportunities. But their health status could be of great concern. Now with the National Urban Health Mission, access to clean water, improved sanitation and healthcare centre access would be taken up. This would ensure hygiene and better living conditions that could stall most infectious and contagious diseases, said Karnataka health and family welfare minister UT Khader.

Of the 13 Urban Public Health Centres, eight are in Bengaluru at Kamashipalya, Anjanapa Garden, Sultanpalya, Sahakaranagar, Narayanapura, Adugodi, Elechanahalli and Koramangala. The remaining Urban Public Health Centres would be two each at Mysore, Mangaluru and Bagalkote.

Some of the existing healthcare facilities now identified under the Urban Public Health Centres would be revamped with modernisation of infrastructure and deployment of medical staff, nurses and paramedics. There would also be the need to muster for medicines and diagnostic equipment.

The minister said that the towns and cities having a population of more than 50,000 would be covered under the scheme.

According to the state officials, the efforts of Bengaluru Bruhut Mahanagara Palike has already charted the public and private health facilities along with information on the listed and unlisted slums with demographic profile and morbidity date indicated.