Parliament Question: Shortage of Allied Health Professionals

GOVERNMENTOFINDIA MINISTRYOFHEALTH AND FAMILYWELFARE DEPARTMENTOFHEALTH AND FAMILYWELFARE LOK SABHA UNSTARREDQUESTION NO. 2300 TO BE ANSWEREDON 31STJULY2026 SHORTAGEOFALLIED HEALTH PROFESSIONALS

2300. SHRISRIBHARATMATHUKUMILLI:

Will the Minister of HEALTHANDFAMILYWELFARE be pleased tostate:

(a) whether the Government has assessed the shortage of Allied Health Professionals (AHPs) including physiotherapists, laboratory, dialysis and radiology professionals and if so, the details of the current demand, available workforce and shortage of such professionals, profession-wise, district-wise andState-wise;

(b) whether the target of adding one lakh AHPs in five years is based on such workforce-gap assessment and if so, the annual recruitment/training targets fixed thereunder, State-wise and profession-wise;

(c) the number of institutions assessed for faculty, laboratories, clinical training capacity and compliance with the National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professions (NCAHP) curricula, which is mandatory from 2026, along with the deficiencies identified for the same;

and

(d) the amount of funds allocated for upgrading AHP institutions and the measurable annual indicators fixed to monitor whether increased training seats translate into qualified professionals employedinareasof shortage across the country,State-wise? ANSWER THE MINISTER OFSTATE IN THE MINISTRYOFHEALTH AND FAMILYWELFARE (SMT. ANUPRIYAPATEL)

(a)to(d): The assessment andmanagementof healthworkforce requirementsisanongoing, dynamic process carried out in coordination with State Governments and Union Territories based on evolving public health needs. To establish a robust statutory mechanism for regulating allied and healthcare professions across 57recognized categories, the Government enactedthe National Commission for AlliedandHealthcare Professions (NCAHP) Act, 2021, and constituted the National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Profession(NCAHP)under the provisions of the Act. NCAHP has finalised 18 competency based curriculum and online enrolment portals for professionals and institutions were made live in October 2024 to facilitate central and state-level workforce mapping. Furthermore, 29 States/UTs have constituted State Allied and Healthcare Councils for implementation and execution of the provisions underthe Act.

To address the evolving demands for AHPs in healthcare ecosystem, the Central Government in Budget Announcement 2026,announced addition of 100,000 AHPsover next five years. Further, an amount of Rs.1000 Crore has been allocated in this year for the Schemefor AlliedHealth Care Professionals.

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