Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje says the government does not have enough doctors.
In face of a huge crunch of doctors and medical personnel, the Rajasthan government is looking at public-private partnership in healthcare. It has already given more than 35 primary healthcare centres to private institutions to run and plans to give another 300 after the second week of October.
There are more than 2000 primary health centres in the state. To run them, nearly 11,000 medical personnel are required. But the government has only 8,000.
Private players who take over medical centers, will have to provide doctors, nurses, lab technicians and functioning equipment, including a labour room - All services should come at government rates. For each centre, the government will pay Rs 30 lakh a year.
The Opposition alleges that the BJP government wants to wind down even successful schemes like the free medicine scheme started by the Gehlot government to benefit big stake holders, like insurance companies.
Also, with private players handling primary healthcare centres, there will be no accountability as in a government-run set up, they point out.
Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje has defended her government's decision, saying "We don't have enough doctors... if we do it in a PPP mode, we can give better health services to people in villages."
For the people in Achrol village on the outskirts of Jaipur, the system is working.
At the primary health center, which has been taken over by the NIMS hospital, a woman patient said, "Earlier, a doctor was rarely here. But now, we see a doctor sitting here at all times."
Another woman, who brought her pregnant daughter-in-law for delivery, said, "This place now looks cleaner. Earlier, there was garbage lying around."
Dr Narendra, who runs the non-profit Prayas which works in the health sector, said: "If the government backs out of primary healthcare, bigger hospitals will start using these centres as a place for medical students to practice. Also, they will start referring these poor patients to their bigger hospitals for further treatment."