Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday announced a sweeping set of health-sector initiatives in the Union Budget 2026–27, with a strong focus on workforce expansion, traditional medicine, and medical tourism. In her speech, Sitharaman said the government would support states in creating five regional medical hubs in partnership with the private sector.
To meet rising global demand for traditional medicine, the minister proposed three steps: first the establishment of three All India Institutes of Ayurveda; second, upgradation of Ayush pharmacies, drug‑testing laboratories; and third, upgradation of the WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine in Jamnagar to bolster evidence based research, training and awareness for traditional medicines.
A major push was also announced for the allied health profession. “Existing institutions for allied health professionals will be upgraded and new Allied Health Professionals (AHP) institutions will be established in government and private sectors,” she said.
Existing training infrastructure will be upgraded and new institutions opened across government and private sectors, covering 10 disciplines including optometry, radiology, anesthesia and applied psychology. This initiative aims to add one lakh allied health professionals within five years.
Additionally, a robust geriatric and allied care ecosystem will be developed, supported by NSQF‑aligned training programmes. The minister confirmed that 1.5 lakh caregivers will be trained in the coming year
This will cover 10 selected disciplines including optometry, radiology, anesthesia, OT tech, applied psychology and behavioural health, she said. “This will add one lakh AHPs over the next five years,” she said during her speech.
The Finance Minister noted that these facilities will include an Ayush centre and a medical value tourism facilitation unit. These medical hubs are expected to generate 1.5 lakh jobs for doctors and allied health professionals, Sitharaman said in her budget speech.
Additionally, Sitharaman also proposed a Rs 10,000-crore investment in the biopharma sector over the next five years, a move which would give a boost to the country’s pharmaceuticals industry. Biopharmaceuticals, or biologics, are complex medicines manufactured from living organisms, cells, or tissues rather than through chemical synthesis.
She also proposed interventions in six areas, including manufacturing, strategic and frontier sectors, healthcare and advanced technology.
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