Centre Launches National Ambulance Guidelines, SUMAN Roadmap 2030 and Child Health Mission

The Union government on Monday launched three major healthcare initiatives aimed at strengthening emergency medical services, reducing maternal and newborn deaths, and improving healthcare for children during their first three years of life. Union Health Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda unveiled the Operational Guidelines on National Ambulance Services (NAS) 2026 , the SUMAN Roadmap 2030 , and the Samagra Shishu Bal Swasthya Karyakram (SSBSK) at the 16th Conference of the Central Council of Health and Family Welfare, the apex Centre-State health policy forum constituted under Article 263 of the Constitution. The conference also focused on National Health Mission priorities, food and drug reforms, and allied health services.

The NAS 2026 guidelines establish uniform national standards for ambulance categories, staffing, equipment, EMT training, infection control and maintenance. They mandate AIS 125 compliance, GPS enabled ambulance tracking, Integrated Command and Dispatch Centres, GIS based mapping of hospitals and accident hotspots, scientific ambulance deployment, and phased integration with the 112 emergency helpline to improve response times and patient outcomes.

The SUMAN Roadmap 2030 targets 130 high burden districts across 13 states, aiming to reduce the Maternal Mortality Ratio below 70 per 100,000 live births by 2030. It introduces bi weekly ASHA visits during the eighth and ninth months of pregnancy, high risk pregnancy monitoring, Birth Waiting Homes, Maternal and Child Health Wings, obstetric HDUs, AI enabled labour rooms, the JANANI portal, and strengthened maternal death surveillance.

The SSBSK integrates Home Based Newborn Care and Home Based Care for Young Children into a single programme covering birth to 36 months. It provides additional home visits for at-risk children, well baby sessions, monthly health camps, maternal mental health screening, digital tracking through ABHA , Baal ABHA , U WIN , JANANI and POSHAN Tracker , while promoting nutrition, early learning and limiting excessive screen time. The programme also extends tailored services to urban slums, migrant and underserved populations.