Q.Write about National Rural Health Mission.

The NRHM (2005) is a central health mission that provides affordable, quality healthcare to rural India by strengthening rural health infrastructure and deploying ASHA workers, with the goal of lowering infant and maternal mortality.

In the Tamil Nadu HSC Class-11 Economics syllabus, the National Rural Health Mission is studied as a major public-health and human-development initiative. Its key points are:

1. Objective. Launched in 2005, the NRHM aims to provide accessible, affordable and quality healthcare to the rural population, with special attention to women, children and the poorer and weaker sections.
2. Health infrastructure. It strengthens the three-tier rural health system — Sub-centres, Primary Health Centres (PHCs) and Community Health Centres (CHCs) — and upgrades their facilities and staffing.
3. ASHA workers. It created a cadre of trained community health volunteers called ASHA (Accredited Social Health Activist) to link villages with the health system. …