**Executive Summary**
This document presents an update from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on the availability of the health workforce in public health facilities in India as of February 10, 2026. The report highlights the number of registered doctors and AYUSH practitioners, the doctor-population ratio, the number of nursing personnel, and the output of nursing institutions. It also touches upon the support provided to States/UTs for strengthening public healthcare.
**Key Points / Main Content**
* **Registered Medical Practitioners:**
* 13,88,185 registered allopathic doctors.
* 7,51,768 registered AYUSH practitioners.
* **Doctor-Population Ratio:**
* India's doctor-population ratio is 1:811, exceeding the WHO standard of 1:1000.
* **Nursing Personnel:**
* 39.40 lakh nursing personnel are present in the country.
* There are 5310 nursing institutions, including 806 government institutions.
* These institutions produce nearly 3.82 lakh nursing personnel annually.
* **Government Support for Healthcare Strengthening:**
* The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare provides technical and financial support to States/UTs to strengthen public healthcare, especially in rural areas, via Programme Implementation Plans (PIPs) under the National Health Mission.
* Government of India provides approval for proposals in the form of Record of Proceedings (RoPs) as per norms & available resources.
* **Filling Vacancies:**
* State/UT Governments have the primary responsibility of filling vacancies in Government Hospitals.
* National Health Mission (NHM) supplements human resources to address critical gaps in the short to medium term.
**Impact Analysis**
**State/UT Governments**
* **Impact:** Responsible for strengthening public healthcare, including filling vacancies in government hospitals.
* **Action Required:** Develop and submit Programme Implementation Plans (PIPs) under the National Health Mission to receive technical and financial support from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
**Ministry of Health and Family Welfare**
* **Impact:** Provides technical and financial support to States/UTs to strengthen public healthcare.
* **Action Required:** Review proposals received in the form of Programme Implementation Plans (PIPs) and provide approval in the form of Record of Proceedings (RoPs) as per norms and available resources.
Key Entities Referenced
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare: The central government ministry responsible for health policy in India, providing support to States/UTs to strengthen the public healthcare system.
National Health Mission: A government program under which the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare provides technical and financial support to the States/UTs to strengthen the public healthcare system.
Indian Nursing Council: Informs about nursing personnel in the country.
Health Dynamics of India (HDI): Annual publication based on Health care administrative data reported by States/UTs, which contains details of doctor, nurse and specialist availability ratios in public health facilities.
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
Update on Health Workforce Availability in Public
Health Facilities
There are 13,88,185 registered allopathic doctors and
7,51,768 registered AYUSH practitioners
India’s doctor-population ratio of 1:811 is better than the
WHO standard of 1:1000
39.40 lakh nursing personnel present in the country
5310 Nursing institutions including 806 government
institutions producing nearly 3.82 lakh nursing personnel
annually, to meet the requirement of nursing personnel in the
country
Posted On: 10 FEB 2026 1:51PM by PIB Delhi
Health Dynamics of India (HDI) (Infrastructure & Human Resources), 2022-23 is an annual publication,
based on Health care administrative data reported by States/UTs. Details of doctor, nurse and specialist
availability ratios in public health facilities can be assessed at the following link of HDI 2022-23:
https://mohfw.gov.in/sites/default/files/Health%20Dynamics%20of%20India%20%28Infrastructure%20%
26%20Human%20Resources%29%202022-23_RE%20%281%29.pdf
There are 13,88,185 registered allopathic doctors and 7,51,768 registered AYUSH practitioners. Assuming
that 80% of registered practitioners in both the allopathic and AYUSH systems are available, the doctor-
population ratio in the country is estimated to be 1:811, which is better than World Health Organization
(WHO) standard of 1:1000.
As informed by Indian Nursing Council (INC), there are 39.40 lakh nursing personnel in the country and
assuming 80% active, resulting in a nurse to population ratio of 2.23 nurses per thousand population.
There are 5310 Nursing institutions including 806 government institutions producing nearly 3.82 lakh
nursing personnel annually, to meet the requirement of nursing personnel in the country.
The primary responsibility of strengthening public healthcare system, including filling up of the vacancies
in Government Hospitals lies with the respective State/UT Governments. The Ministry of Health and
Family Welfare provides technical and financial support to the States/UTs to strengthen the public
healthcare system in rural areas based on the proposals received in the form of Programme
Implementation Plans (PIPs) under National Health Mission. Government of India provides approval for
the proposal in the form of Record of Proceedings (RoPs) as per norms & available resources. States/ UTsto ensure availability of HR by creating adequate number of regular posts as per the Indian Public Health
Standards (IPHS) in the long run and using NHM posts in the short to medium term to fill critical gaps.
The NHM supplements the regular human resources by filling up the gaps in human resources in
secondary and primary care facilities (District Hospital and below) as per IPHS.
The Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, Shri Prataprao Jadhav stated this in a written
reply in the Rajya Sabha today.
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