The Maharashtra government is considering handing some public hospitals in tribal areas to private operators under a public-private partnership (PPP), state Health Minister Prakash Abitkar said on Monday, according to Hindustan Times. He did not say how many hospitals could be covered.
Why the government is considering it
Abitkar said earlier efforts to improve care in rural hospitals had not worked, despite orders from the Bombay High Court.
"When we faced criticism from the Bombay HC for not having specialists in the rural hospitals in the tribal belt, we did post specialists in our rural hospitals as per their orders," he said. But attendance remained a problem. "Doctors would be available for four days a week and then simply be absent," he said.
He said some private initiatives in tribal areas were doing well, and the government wanted to try similar models in a few of its own hospitals.
Background: a case running since 2007
The High Court has been hearing a petition since 2007 seeking better healthcare for women and children in the state. It directed health officials to visit the tribal Melghat region, after which the department told the court it planned a "tribal-first" policy requiring all government doctors to serve in a tribal area. The state also introduced a hardship allowance for staff in remote areas.
Maharashtra has 16 designated tribal districts out of 36. It introduced a PPP policy across sectors in February 2026.
The objection
Activists have criticised the plan. "There are 16 tribal districts of Maharashtra where access to healthcare services remains poor, with inadequate healthcare personnel, lack of medicine and services and a poor network of healthcare centres. Instead of privatising tertiary care centres in this belt, the government should focus on strengthening its own health network," an activist told HT on condition of anonymity.