Medical and Health Minister Gajendra Singh told the Rajasthan Assembly on Tuesday that expenditure under the Chief Minister Free Nirogi Rajasthan (Medicine) Scheme has not been reduced, dismissing concerns over any cutback in funding.
He informed the House that ₹1,572 crore was spent in 2023, followed by ₹1,725 crore in 2024 and ₹1,656 crore in 2025, underscoring the state government’s continued commitment to free medicine access.
Under the RGHS scheme, the minister said 19.71 crore beneficiaries were covered in 2023–24, 19.95 crore in 2024–25, and 15.73 crore people up to December 2025 in 2025–26, taking the total coverage to over 55 crore beneficiaries in three years.
Responding to supplementary questions raised by MLA Harimohan Sharma during Question Hour, the minister clarified that no departmental doctor had prescribed cough syrup in cases where child deaths were reported. Investigations revealed that in one case, a two-year-old child was given cough syrup without medical advice, leading to death due to overdose, while other cases involved comorbidities.
In a written reply, the minister tabled year-wise and district-wise allocation and expenditure details (January 2023–December 2025) for the scheme. He also shared data on publicity spending by the Health Department, stating that ₹23.54 crore was spent out of ₹38.86 crore sanctioned in 2023–24, ₹28.44 crore out of ₹37.37 crore in 2024–25, and ₹1.98 crore spent up to December 31, 2025, against ₹21.59 crore sanctioned in 2025–26. He clarified that no separate budget is earmarked exclusively for publicity under the free medicine scheme.
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