The state government hospital Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology in Bangalore had refused to give a cover of Rs 5 lakh under the Ayushman Yojana to a 72-year-old man. After this, the elderly man committed suicide on December 25 last year.

What did the Commission write in the notice?

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Thursday issued a notice to the Central and Karnataka governments in a case related to the Ayushman Bharat scheme. In the notice, the commission has also mentioned some other problems faced by senior citizen beneficiaries in the scheme. The commission said that if senior citizens are not getting the benefits of the scheme made for them, then it may be a violation of the right to health.

'The hospital refused to provide free treatment'

In an interview given to a newspaper, a member of the victim's family said that the elderly man was suffering from cancer. When they came to know that the hospital refused to give a cover of Rs 5 lakh under (AB PM-JAY), for which they had registered.

What is Ayushman Bharat Yojana

This scheme is a public attractive scheme of the Government of India, under which eligible people are given the benefit of free treatment. The Modi government launched the Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Yojana in the year 2018. It provides insurance of free treatment up to Rs 5 lakh to poor and needy people.