Centre Dodges NHM Funding Questions as Kerala Faces Sharp Cut in 2023–24

New Delhi: The Union government stands accused of evasion after failing to give clear answers in Parliament on the drastic fall in National Health Mission (NHM) funding to Kerala in 2023–24. Raising the issue, Dr John Brittas MP questioned the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on two specific points: the initially allocated or provisioned Central share for Kerala under NHM in 2023–24, and the reasons behind the sudden collapse in actual fund releases that year. The reply addressed neither.

Instead of responding to what Kerala was entitled to receive and why that entitlement appeared to vanish, the Ministry merely repeated year-wise actual releases, data it had already provided earlier in July 2025. This recycling of figures sidesteps the core concern: how a state that received over 1,000 crore rupees in 2022–23 was left with barely a fraction of that amount the very next year, without any convincing explanation.

The numbers tell a stark story. Central NHM releases to Kerala stood at 1,036.76 crore rupees in 2022–23. In 2023–24, this plunged to just 189.15 crore rupees, an extraordinary 81.7 per cent reduction within a single financial year. The following year saw a sharp rebound to 1,351.78 crore rupees in 2024–25, before falling again to 634.99 crore rupees in 2025–26. The 2023–24 dip remains an abnormal outlier, unexplained and isolated.

Rather than offering clarity, the Ministry’s response retreats behind familiar defences. It reiterates that public health is a State subject, subtly shifting responsibility onto Kerala, while also stressing that fund releases depend on compliance with guidelines laid down by the Department of Expenditure under the Ministry of Finance. What it conspicuously avoids is stating whether Kerala had an approved allocation for 2023–24 in the first place, and if so, why that allocation translated into such a meagre release.

Equally telling is the absence of any commitment to compensate for the loss. When asked whether the Centre would take steps to offset the severe funding shortfall of 2023–24, the reply offers no assurance or corrective plan. Instead, it falls back on vague references to an “overall resource envelope” and state-submitted plans, effectively washing its hands of responsibility.

For a programme as critical as the National Health Mission, such opacity raises serious questions. A one-year collapse of this magnitude cannot be brushed aside as routine compliance issues or procedural delays. By refusing to disclose the initial allocation and the reasons for its non-release, the Centre appears less interested in accountability and more focused on deflecting scrutiny, leaving Kerala — and its public health system, to bear the consequences.