A Prototype for Affordable Healthcare
Architect Akshat Bhatt proposes a cost-effective solution to bring affordable medical services to vulnerable communities.
Mohalla Clinics, Delhi Architecture Discipline, Delhi
Project: Mohalla Clinics, Delhi
Architects: Architecture Discipline, Delhi
I ndia’s health infrastructure is facing one of its biggest crises in the post-Independence era. For many years, the country has fared poorly on health infrastructure indices—the Human Development Report 2020 shows a national ratio of only five beds per 10,000 people. Existing facilities are highly privatised and expensive. These limitations were exacerbated further by COVID-19 and the stress it exerted on our public health systems. Smaller, grassroots level medical facilities that provide subsidised services and are quickly deployable are a viable solution to this crisis, bringing affordable care to a broader population.
The Mohalla Clinics by Architecture Discipline is one such solution that aims at accessibility, immediacy of care and affordability, along with a socially integrative approach to health and wellbeing. “The prototype for a primary care centre is built out of used shipping containers salvaged from various container yards in Delhi. It is developed on pro bono basis for the Delhi Government’s Aam