Union Health Minister JP Nadda unveils Smart Chatbot 'Ayushman Sakhi' for Health Services

The new ‘Ayushman Sakhi’ chatbot, unveiled by the Union Health Minister, marks a broader national rollout under the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission

Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare JP Nadda has launched ‘Ayushman Sakhi’, a smart chatbot designed to enhance citizen services under national health schemes.

The launch took place in Jabalpur during a major health infrastructure program that also included the inauguration of new government medical colleges and a series of preventive healthcare initiative.

Days back, a similar chatbot ''Ask Ayushman'' was launched in Madhya Pradesh by Chief Minister Mohan Yadav. That version, focused on state-level Ayushman Bharat scheme beneficiaries, provided WhatsApp-based access to treatment details, hospital availability, and transaction history.

The new ‘Ayushman Sakhi’ chatbot, unveiled by the Union Health Minister, marks a broader national rollout under the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission. It is integrated with frontline services, offering support for ASHA workers, maternal and child health initiatives, and access to central health schemes.

At the Jabalpur event, Nadda also inaugurated government medical colleges in Sheopur and Singrauli, released communication material on maternal nutrition, and announced one crore screenings achieved under the Swasthya Yakrit Mission.

The “Asha Samvaad” platform was also launched to enable direct communication between ASHA workers and the Ministry of Health. In addition, 8 lakh Vay Vandana PVC cards were distributed to senior citizens to facilitate access to health services.

Speaking at the occasion, Nadda emphasized the government’s vision of expanding access to quality medical education and healthcare while strengthening preventive care. He noted that Madhya Pradesh now has 17 government medical colleges and 13 private institutions, highlighting its emergence as a strong performer in the health sector.

He added that the Ayushman Bharat scheme has grown into the world’s largest health coverage program with 50 crore beneficiaries. The minister also cited significant declines in maternal and child mortality rates, large-scale screening for non-communicable diseases, and the doubling of medical colleges across the country since 2014 as evidence of the government’s healthcare reforms.

Chief Minister Mohan Yadav highlighted the state’s progress in expanding medical education and credited schemes such as Ayushman Bharat PMJAY for delivering financial protection to vulnerable families.

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