Health Education Budget 2026: Major boost to allied health sciences, 3 new AIIAs, NIMHANS in north India

Education Budget of India: The finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in her Union Budget 2026-27 speech on Sunday, announced several measures aimed at boosting skilling and employment in the healthcare sector, especially in the allied and healthcare professions (AHP), commonly referred to as paramedical courses, and traditional medicine.

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The minister set a goal of adding one lakh allied and healthcare professionals over the next five years, which would be achieved by upgrading and setting up new private and government-run AHP training institutes. Rs 1,000 crore has been allocated in the health ministry budget for this purpose.

She also proposed creating five regional medical hubs, which will have educational and research opportunities, besides other facilities. Three new All India Institutes of Ayurveda (AIIAs) are also set to be opened. The central government will also establish a second National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS) in north India, named NIMHANS-2, on the lines of the premier mental health institute in Bengaluru.

The focus on AHPs comes in the backdrop of the centre’s ongoing efforts to regulate and standardise the training for allied health science programmes through the National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professionals (NCAHP) . The finance minister said that the skilling initiatives will cover 10 disciplines including optometry, radiology, anesthesia, OT technology, applied psychology and behavioural health.

Education Budget 2026: New AIIAs, AYUSH centres

“A strong care system covering geriatric and allied system will be built. A variety of NSQF [the National Skill Qualifications Framework] aligned programmes will be developed to train multi-skilled caregivers, combining core care and allied skills such as wellness, yoga and operation of medical assistance devices,” she said.

The regional medical hubs, to be developed by the government in collaboration with the private sector, have been described as “integrated healthcare complexes” featuring medical, educational and research facilities. “They will have AYUSH [Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy] centres, medical value tourism facilitation centres and infrastructure for diagnostic, post-care and rehabilitation. These hubs will provide diverse job opportunities for healthcare professionals, including doctors and AHPs,” said Sitharaman.

In addition to creating three new AIIAs, the government plans to upgrade the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Global Traditional Medicine Centre (GTMC) in Jamnagar, Gujarat to enhance evidence-based research, awareness and training for traditional medicine. It also announced upgrading AYUSH pharmacies and drug testing labs of higher standards for certification ecosystem and preparing more skilled personnel.

“Post COVID, Ayurveda gained similar global acceptance and recognition [as Yoga]. Exporting quality Ayurveda products helps farmers who grow the herbs and youths who process the products. To meet growing global demand, a few more steps are being taken,” said the minister.

Two other mental health institutes – the Central Institute of Psychiatry (CIP), Ranchi and Lokopriya Gopinath Bordoloi Regional Institute of Mental Health (LPBRIMH), Tezpur – are set to be upgraded as “Regional Apex Institutions”.

"Emergencies expose families, particularly the poor and vulnerable, to unexpected expenditure. We will strengthen and increase these capacities by 50% in District Hospitals by establishing Emergency and Trauma Care Centres,” said Sitharaman.

The cumulative outlay for the existing and new All India Institutes of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and other premier medical education institutes, including Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh, Jawaharlal Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research, Puducherry and NIMHANS has been increased from Rs 20,046 crore in 2025-26 to Rs 22,343 in the next fiscal.

However, the three Delhi medical colleges funded by the Centre - Vardhman Mahavir Medical College (VMMC), Atal Bihari Vajpayee Institute of Medical Sciences (ABVIMS) and Lady Hardinge Medical College (LHMC) - had minor cuts in their grants.

The autonomous bodies under AYUSH ministry, such as AIIA and the National Institute of Homeopathy, Kolkata, too, saw their allocation rise from Rs 1,966 crore to Rs 2,312 crore.