HEALTHY POPULATION A KEY PILLAR TO ENSURE RESILIENT FUTURE: ECONOMIC SURVEY 2025-26

1. At a Glance

• Chapter of the Economic Survey 2025-26 (Ministry of Finance, Department of Economic Affairs) framing public health as human-capital infrastructure essential for sustained productivity and growth [S1].
• Documents India's outperformance of global trends on maternal, infant and child mortality while flagging emerging threats: obesity, ultra-processed foods (UPFs), digital addiction, mental health [S1][S2].
• UPSC relevance: cuts across GS-II (Health, Government schemes) and GS-III (Economic Survey, S&T applications); rich in MCQ-grade numbers.

2. Why in the News

• Tabled in Parliament ahead of Union Budget 2026-27; the chapter explicitly identifies a "healthy population" as a pillar of resilient future growth [S1].
• Introduces fresh policy hooks: PRAGYATAH framework (digital education / screen time) and the Online Gaming (Regulation) Act, 2025 to curb digital addiction in children [S1].

3. Background & Evolution

• Builds on the Economic Survey 2024-25 finding that government share in total health expenditure rose from 29.0% (FY15) to 48.0% (FY22) [S3].
• Continuum: National Health Mission (NHM, 2013) → Ayushman Bharat (2018) with PM-JAY, HWCs, ABDM, e-Sanjeevani → present focus on NCDs, mental health and digital wellness [S1][S2].
• Aligns India's trajectory with SDG-3 (2030) mortality targets [S2].

4. Core Static Facts

• Publisher: Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance [S1].
• Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR): India's decline 86% since 1990 vs global 48% [S2].
• Under-5 Mortality Rate (U5MR): India 78% decline vs global 61% (1990-2023) [S2].
• Neonatal Mortality Rate (NMR): India 70% vs global 54% (1990-2023) [S2].
• Infant Mortality Rate (IMR): Fell >37% in past decade — from 40 per 1,000 live births (2013) → 25 (2023) [S2].
• UPF market growth in India: >150% (2009-2023) — among the fastest globally [S2].
• Digital health platforms: Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM), e-Sanjeevani (tele-consultation), Hospital Management Information System [S1][S2].
• Mental health: Tele-MANAS (national tele-mental health programme) and SHUT (Service for Healthy Use of Technology) Clinic at NIMHANS, Bengaluru [S1].
• Education / Digital wellness: PRAGYATAH framework — Ministry of Education guide on screen time [S2].
• Statute: Online Gaming (Regulation) Act, 2025 — addresses gaming addiction in children [S1].
• Emerging tool: AI and tech-driven surveys to identify "health hotspots" [S1].

5. Multi-Dimensional Analysis

Economic - Healthy population = improved human capital and labour productivity, reducing out-of-pocket expenditure (OOPE) [S1][S3]. - NCDs (diabetes, CVD, hypertension) impose growing fiscal burden via UPF-driven obesity [S2].

Social - Mortality gains improve gender equity (MMR ↓) and child welfare; obesity now an "all age-group" risk [S2]. - Digital addiction erodes social capital and academic outcomes — flagged for children [S2].

Scientific / Technological - ABDM creates citizen health IDs; e-Sanjeevani scales tele-consultation [S2]. - AI-driven epidemiological surveys for hotspot mapping mark a shift to predictive public health [S1].

Administrative / Governance - Multi-ministry coordination: MoHFW (Tele-MANAS, ABDM), MoE (PRAGYATAH), MeitY (Online Gaming Act) [S1][S2]. - Survey recommends multi-pronged strategy (taxation, labelling, awareness) for UPFs and obesity [S2].

Legal / Regulatory - Online Gaming (Regulation) Act, 2025 — first statutory architecture targeting digital addiction [S1]. - Dietary/policy interventions on UPFs implicitly invoke FSSAI labelling regime [S2].

6. Recent Developments (last 12-18 months)

• 2025: Enactment of the Online Gaming (Regulation) Act, 2025 [S1].
• 2025-26: Economic Survey 2025-26 dedicates a chapter to "Healthy Population" highlighting AI-based health hotspot identification [S1].
• 2024-25: Government share of THE rose to 48% (FY22) per prior Survey [S3].
• 2023: IMR recorded at 25 per 1,000 live births [S2].

7. Prelims Hooks

• India's MMR decline since 1990: 86% vs global 48% [S2].
• India's U5MR decline 1990-2023: 78% [S2].
• India's NMR decline 1990-2023: 70% [S2].
• IMR fell from 40 (2013) to 25 (2023) — drop >37% [S2].
• UPF market growth in India 2009-2023: >150% [S2].
• ABDM and e-Sanjeevani = digital health pillars cited in Survey [S1].
• Tele-MANAS = national tele-mental health helpline [S1].
• SHUT Clinic located at NIMHANS, Bengaluru — for technology overuse [S1].
• PRAGYATAH = framework by Ministry of Education on screen time [S2].
• Online Gaming (Regulation) Act, 2025 targets children's digital addiction [S1].
• Government share in Total Health Expenditure: 29% (FY15) → 48% (FY22) [S3].
• Economic Survey is authored by Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance [S1].

8. Mains Relevance

• GS-II: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector — Health.
• GS-III: Indian Economy (Economic Survey); Science & Technology applications in everyday life.
• Probable stems: 1. "Healthy population is the foundation of a resilient economy." Discuss in light of Economic Survey 2025-26. 2. Examine the role of digital health initiatives (ABDM, e-Sanjeevani, Tele-MANAS) in achieving Universal Health Coverage. 3. Ultra-processed foods and digital addiction represent the "new public health frontier" for India. Suggest a multi-pronged policy response.

9. Related Topics to Study Next

• Ayushman Bharat–PM-JAY — flagship insurance arm.
• National Health Mission (NHM) — umbrella programme behind MMR/IMR gains.
• National Mental Health Programme & Tele-MANAS — mental health architecture.
• FSSAI front-of-pack labelling regulations — UPF link.
• SDG-3 targets (2030) — global benchmark.
• National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5) — data backbone.
• DPI / India Stack (ABDM, ABHA) — digital public infrastructure in health.
• Online Gaming (Regulation) Act, 2025 — statutory dimension of digital wellness.

10. Common Errors / Trap Areas

• Confusing NMR (neonatal, 0-28 days) with IMR (under 1 year) and U5MR (under 5).
• Attributing PRAGYATAH to MoHFW — it is Ministry of Education [S2].
• Confusing Tele-MANAS (mental health) with e-Sanjeevani (general tele-consultation) [S1].
• Locating SHUT Clinic in AIIMS — it is at NIMHANS, Bengaluru [S1].
• Citing global MMR decline as 86% — that is India's figure; global is 48% [S2].

11. Sources

• [S1] HEALTHY POPULATION A KEY PILLAR TO ENSURE RESILIENT FUTURE: ECONOMIC SURVEY 2025-26 — https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2219931 — (tier 1)
• [S2] PIB search result excerpts on Economic Survey 2025-26 (MMR/U5MR/NMR/IMR, UPF, PRAGYATAH, ABDM) — https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2219931&reg=3&lang=2 — (tier 1)
• [S3] SHARE OF GOVERNMENT HEALTH EXPENDITURE IN THE TOTAL HEALTH EXPENDITURE HAS INCREASED FROM 29.0% TO 48.0% BETWEEN FY15 AND FY22: ECONOMIC SURVEY 2024-25 — https://pib.gov.in/PressReleseDetailm.aspx?PRID=2097868 — (tier 1)