Question map
With reference to Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission, consider the following statements : 1. Private and public hospitals must adopt it. 2. As it aims to achieve universal health coverage, every citizen of India should be part of it ultimately. 3. It has seamless portability across the country. Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
Explanation
The correct answer is Option 2 (3 only). The Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) is a voluntary initiative aimed at creating a digital health ecosystem in India.
- Statement 1 is incorrect: Participation in ABDM is voluntary for both patients and healthcare providers. While the government encourages adoption, there is no mandatory legal requirement for private and public hospitals to adopt it.
- Statement 2 is incorrect: Although the mission aligns with the broader goal of Universal Health Coverage, enrollment is not mandatory for every citizen. The creation of an Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA) is based on informed consent and remains optional.
- Statement 3 is correct: A core objective of ABDM is to ensure seamless portability. It allows citizens to access and share their longitudinal health records digitally across various healthcare providers nationwide, ensuring continuity of care regardless of geographical location.
Thus, only statement 3 accurately describes the functional framework of the mission.
PROVENANCE & STUDY PATTERN
Full viewThis is a classic 'Scheme Architecture' question sourced from Current Affairs (PIB/Newspapers). The core difficulty lies in the 'Voluntary vs. Mandatory' trap. UPSC habitually tests whether digital initiatives (like Aadhaar, Aarogya Setu, ABDM) are compulsory, making this a pattern-based elimination question rather than a pure knowledge one.
This question can be broken into the following sub-statements. Tap a statement sentence to jump into its detailed analysis.
- Statement 1: Is adoption of the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission mandatory for private and public hospitals in India?
- Statement 2: Does the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission aim to include every citizen of India as part of achieving universal health coverage?
- Statement 3: Does the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission provide seamless nationwide portability of health records across India?
Mentions implementation of the National Digital Health Blueprint through the National Digital Health Mission β indicates a central plan to roll out a digital health framework.
A student could check whether a central implementation plan typically includes legal mandates or whether it relies on state/organizational adoption (e.g., by comparing with other centrally promoted blueprints).
Describes Digital India as a central push to get government departments and citizens to connect digitally β frames digital initiatives as national encouragement for e-governance.
Use the general pattern of Digital India programmes (often driven by central policy but variably implemented by states/organisations) to question whether adoption is compulsory or incentivised.
States that public health is a state subject and that creation of departments and implementation of schemes falls under State/UT purview.
Combine this rule with knowledge of Indian federalism: if health is a state subject, a nationwide digital health mission may require state-level adoption or rules for mandatory compliance vary by state.
Notes increased emphasis on private healthcare organisations in national health policy and inclusion of private facilities in Ayushman Bharat insurance coverage.
A student could infer that because private facilities are significant stakeholders, any mandate affecting them would likely involve policy/contractual mechanisms (e.g., linking insurance empanelment to compliance) rather than unilateral top-down compulsion.
Describes central tracking/indices (District Hospital Index) and collaboration with national bodies for hospital performance monitoring β an example of central measurement relying on data from hospitals.
Use this example to consider whether data-driven central indices have historically been enforced by mandate or participation/coordination, informing how a digital mission might be rolled out to hospitals.
- Explicitly states ABDM aims to create longitudinal electronic health records of every citizen, indicating an intention to include all citizens.
- Links the ABHA/HPR/HFR registries to that objective, showing system-level inclusion of individuals and facilities.
- The ABDM vision explicitly ties the mission to supporting universal health coverage, showing UHC is a core aim.
- The vision frames a national digital health ecosystem that is intended to be efficient, accessible, inclusive and affordable β characteristics aligned with universal inclusion.
- Describes ABDM as a 'watershed moment' in the journey towards Universal Health Coverage, directly linking the mission to achieving UHC.
- Notes issuance of a unique ABHA as key to delivering health interventions across the country, implying nationwide coverage.
Mentions implementation of the National Digital Health Blueprint through a National Digital Health Mission β indicating a planned national digital health architecture.
A student could infer that a nationwide digital health platform is intended to enable broad inclusion, and check external sources for whether that platform creates digital IDs for all citizens.
Describes Digital Indiaβs explicit aim to 'electronically empower the Indian citizen' and connect all government departments and people digitally.
One could reasonably extend this general Digital India objective to expect similar ambitions in digital health initiatives and then verify if ABDM uses Digital India infrastructure to reach every citizen.
States Ayushman Bharat was launched as a government health insurance programme and placed among major national health initiatives.
A student might use the programmeβs national importance to infer ambitions toward wide coverage, then compare its stated beneficiary count to India's total population to assess universality.
Gives a concrete scale for Ayushman Bharat insurance (~10.74 crore households) and describes benefits per household.
By comparing the programmeβs enrolled households to census/household counts, a student could judge how close the scheme (and by extension related digital efforts) comes to covering every citizen.
Notes NITI Aayogβs contribution to conceptualisation and design of Ayushman Bharat, indicating high-level policy coordination.
A student can infer that central policy intent could target large-scale coverage and then seek external policy documents to see if the digital mission explicitly aims for inclusion of all citizens.
- Directly states ABDM offers Unique Health IDs and Digital Health Records intended for seamless patient care.
- Implies portability of records by linking IDs to digital records for care continuity.
- Explains ABHA is a unique 14 digit number used to link all the health records of a person.
- States the objective is to provide seamless and efficient digital health data exchange accessible to individuals and providers (with consent).
- Reports large-scale creation of ABHAs enabling citizens to securely access and share digital health records across healthcare providers.
- Links the digital infrastructure to continuity of care across primary, secondary and tertiary providers, implying nationwide portability.
States there is a National Digital Health Blueprint to be implemented through a national digital health mission, implying a planned national digital architecture for health data.
A student could check whether a national blueprint typically implies interoperability and portability provisions and then look for implementation status or technical standards to judge portability.
Describes BharatNet as a national programme to provide broadband connectivity to all gram panchayats β infrastructure that would be needed for nationwide digital health record access.
One could map broadband coverage (BharatNet progress) against health-record portability claims to assess whether connectivity gaps would hinder seamless nationwide access.
Gives an example (DILRMP) of a centralised digital programme to improve nationwide record accessibility (land records), showing precedent for central schemes aiming portability/accessibility.
Compare design and rollout challenges of DILRMP (scope, integration) with the Digital Health Mission to infer likely hurdles to achieving seamless nationwide portability.
Notes partial implementation of a national computerisation scheme (582 of 640 districts), illustrating that centrally planned digital records programmes can have incomplete geographic coverage.
Use this pattern to question whether the Digital Health Mission might similarly face incomplete coverage that would prevent truly seamless nationwide portability.
Mentions Ayushman Bharat as a nationwide health insurance programme covering many households, showing the broader Ayushman Bharat umbrella but not directly proving digital-record portability.
A student could verify whether Ayushman Bharatβs digital components (if any) are integrated with the National Digital Health Blueprint to assess portability claims.
- [THE VERDICT]: Trap (The 'Mandatory' Keyword). While the tech details (portability) are correct, the administrative mandates (Statements 1 & 2) are false. Source: PIB/Official ABDM Guidelines.
- [THE CONCEPTUAL TRIGGER]: Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) & Health Governance (Ayushman Bharat umbrella).
- [THE HORIZONTAL EXPANSION]: 1. Implementing Agency: National Health Authority (NHA). 2. Components: ABHA (14-digit ID), Health Facility Registry (HFR), Unified Health Interface (UHI). 3. Legal Status: Voluntary for citizens, voluntary for hospitals (private & public). 4. Data Architecture: Federated (data stays at hospital), not centralized.
- [THE STRATEGIC METACOGNITION]: Whenever a new digital scheme is launched, create a 'Constraint Checklist': Is it mandatory? Is it centralized? Who owns the data? In the post-Puttaswamy (Right to Privacy) era, government schemes involving citizen data are almost always 'Voluntary by design' to avoid legal hurdles.
This is the policy framework intended to drive digital health implementation across India, directly relevant to questions about digital health adoption.
High-yield for UPSC because it links digital governance, health policy and reform implementation; helps answer questions on how national-level digital initiatives are designed and rolled out. Understanding this clarifies differences between policy intent and legal mandate and connects to topics on e-governance and health sector modernization.
- Indian Economy, Nitin Singhania .(ed 2nd 2021-22) > Chapter 21: Sustainable Development and Climate Change > Part V: Government Reforms and Enablers > p. 622
Ayushman Bharat is a major government health scheme that includes private hospitals in its beneficiary network, so knowledge of its scope is key when assessing obligations on private providers.
Important for UPSC because it ties public health financing, publicβprivate partnerships and service delivery; helps tackle questions on scheme design, role of private healthcare and how government programmes interact with private providers. Useful for policy evaluation and administration questions.
- Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 39: After Nehru... > Health Policy > p. 781
- Indian Economy, Nitin Singhania .(ed 2nd 2021-22) > Chapter 14: Service Sector > Ayushman Bharat β Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana > p. 427
Jurisdictional allocation of health to states affects who can mandate implementation of health programmes or digital systems for hospitals.
Crucial for UPSC answers involving federal governance, implementation responsibilities, and locus of authority in public policy. Mastering this helps interpret whether national initiatives can be made mandatory or require state action, and supports answers on CentreβState coordination and the administrative law dimension.
- Exploring Society:India and Beyond ,Social Science, Class VIII . NCERT(Revised ed 2025) > Chapter 6: The Parliamentary System: Legislature and Executive > Action Taken: > p. 150
Ayushman Bharat is described as a government health insurance programme covering a defined number of households, not an explicit universal-by-default programme.
High-yield for UPSC: distinguishes targeted beneficiary-based welfare schemes from universal entitlements; connects to questions on scheme design, beneficiary identification, and debates on pathways to Universal Health Coverage (UHC). Mastering this helps answer policy-comparison and scheme-evaluation questions.
- Indian Economy, Nitin Singhania .(ed 2nd 2021-22) > Chapter 14: Service Sector > Ayushman Bharat β Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana > p. 427
- Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 39: After Nehru... > Health Policy > p. 781
The National Digital Health Blueprint and its implementation through a National Digital Health Mission form the digital-health architecture relevant to any Ayushman Bharat 'Digital' initiative.
Important for governance and health policy topics: explains institutional and technological mechanisms for delivering digital health services, links to Digital India, and helps answer questions on implementation, interoperability, and scale-up of health IT systems.
- Indian Economy, Nitin Singhania .(ed 2nd 2021-22) > Chapter 21: Sustainable Development and Climate Change > Part V: Government Reforms and Enablers > p. 622
Digital India aims to electronically empower the Indian citizen and connect government departments and people digitally, a broad inclusionary goal relevant to digital-health initiatives.
High-yield for mains and interviews: links e-governance to service delivery and inclusion; useful for questions on digital inclusion, the digital divide, and how digital platforms support social-sector programmes like health.
- Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 39: After Nehru... > Digital India: a Step Forward in e-Governance > p. 778
Distinguishes the Ayushman Bharat insurance programme from the National Digital Health Mission/Blueprint that addresses digital health infrastructure.
High-yield for UPSC because questions often ask to separate programmatic healthcare interventions (insurance, service delivery) from digital/IT initiatives; links to governance, health policy, and implementation challenges. Mastery helps answer comparisons, scheme objectives, and policy design questions.
- Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 39: After Nehru... > Health Policy > p. 781
- Indian Economy, Nitin Singhania .(ed 2nd 2021-22) > Chapter 14: Service Sector > Ayushman Bharat β Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana > p. 427
- Indian Economy, Nitin Singhania .(ed 2nd 2021-22) > Chapter 21: Sustainable Development and Climate Change > Part V: Government Reforms and Enablers > p. 622
The 'Consent Manager' Framework (DEPA). Since ABDM is federated, the next logical question is on how data moves. It uses the Data Empowerment and Protection Architecture (DEPA), where data is shared only after explicit electronic consent, managed by 'Consent Managers' (a new class of NBFCs/entities).
The 'Democratic Impossibility' Heuristic. Statement 1 says private hospitals 'must' adopt it. Statement 2 says 'every citizen' should be part of it. In a diverse democracy like India, forcing private entities and 1.4 billion people into a digital system instantly is administratively impossible and legally contentious. Extreme mandates in schemes are 99% False. Eliminate 1 and 2 β Answer is B.
Polity (Article 21 & Privacy). The 'Voluntary' nature of ABDM is not just policy but a constitutional necessity following the K.S. Puttaswamy judgment. A mandatory collection of health data without a specific legislative framework passing the 'Proportionality Test' would be unconstitutional.