Ban Ki- Moon ‘ deeply impressed’ by Delhi’s Mohalla Clinic project
The Aam Aadmi Party’s mohalla clinic initiative drew huge praise on Friday from former Secretary- General of the United Nations, Ban Ki Moon, and former Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland during their visit to a health facility built under the project. Mr Moon and Ms Brundtland visited Peeragarhi Mohalla Clinic and a polyclinic in west Delhi’s Paschim Vihar along with Delhi
Touched and impressed with Mr Kejriwal’s strong engagement and vision to provide primary health care service to poor — Ban Ki Moon,
UN former chief
chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and health minister Satyendra Jain.
Mr Moon said he was deeply “touched and impressed” with Mr Kejriwal’s “strong engagement and vision” to provide primary health care service to the poor. “Mohalla Clinic and polyclinic are good examples of it. I hope there will be much more support and strong engagement at the Union government level also,” he said. The former secretarygeneral suggested India to increase its budgetary support to health services from one per cent of the GDP to 2.5 per cent by 2021. Mr Kejriwal told Mr Moon and Ms Brundtland about “several political obstructions and interventions” created in setting up mohalla clinics. “In the last twoanda- half- year, we could not do any work due to several obstructions but after the Supreme Court judgement we are confident to set up a thousand Mohalla Clinics in next few months,” he said. Mr Moon and Ms Brundtland are in the country as part of a delegation from The Elders, a London- based organisation of independent global leaders who pool their collective experiences and resources for promoting peace, justice and human rights.