Budget comments by Dr. Rakesh Gupta, Chairman, Sarvodaya Hospital, Sector 8, Faridabad

New Delhi, February 01, 2022: A bold budget that lays down a 25-year roadmap for India to become a truly digital economy. The announcement regarding establishment of the National Digital Health Ecosystem is significant. It will make the health sector much more efficient and bring it into the modern age. Mental health has emerged as a silent epidemic in the last few years. Setting up a national tele mental health program to provide counselling and support to patients fulfills an urgent, long-felt need of an overlooked health challenge. Upgrading two lakh anganwadis with better infrastructure will have a positive effect on child health. There is no significant increase in budgetary allocation to health for FY 22-23, which is a bit disappointing considering how the Indian healthcare system struggled to meet the challenge of the epidemic. However, all in all, it is a very well thought out budget that will have a positive impact on the digital and health infrastructure of the country.