India Achieves Doctor-Population Ratio of 1:811, Surpassing WHO Standards
The Union Health Ministry informed Parliament that India's doctor-population ratio stands at 1:811, which is better than the WHO recommended standard of 1:1,000. This calculation includes both modern medicine (allopathy) and AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy) practitioners, assuming 80% availability. There are approximately 13.88 lakh registered allopathic doctors and 7.51 lakh AYUSH practitioners in the country. To improve healthcare access in remote areas, the government has implemented measures like the 'hard-area allowance' for specialist doctors.
Key Points
- The combined ratio of allopathic and AYUSH doctors in India exceeds the WHO benchmark.
- There is a significant number of registered practitioners in both modern and traditional medicine systems.
- Government incentives are being used to encourage doctors to serve in under-served and remote regions.
- The data assumes an 80% availability rate of registered practitioners for the calculation.
Exam Facts
- Current doctor-population ratio in India: 1:811.
- WHO recommended doctor-population ratio: 1:1,000.
- Number of registered modern medicine doctors: 13,88,185.
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