3 min readChandigarhMar 13, 2026 05:40 PM IST
Congress MP Manish Tewari on Friday questioned the doctor deployment profile in Chandigarh’s health system, claiming that of around 221 doctors working in the Union Territory, nearly 180 are on deputation from outside. Alleging that this could be the reason the Chandigarh Administration and the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare did not provide detailed information in Parliament, Tewari criticised what he termed a “perfunctory” reply to his Lok Sabha question on the UT’s health infrastructure.
In a written reply to an unstarred question in the Lok Sabha, the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said that public health and hospitals are state subjects and that the primary responsibility for strengthening healthcare facilities and creating posts of doctors rests with the respective states and Union Territories. The ministry added that the Centre provides technical and financial support under the National Health Mission based on proposals submitted by states and UTs.
The ministry also said that data regarding details of sanctioned posts of doctors and specialists under state governments and UTs are not maintained centrally.
Responding to the reply, Tewari said it was “extremely disappointing” and argued that the Centre cannot evade accountability in the case of Chandigarh, which is a Union Territory without a legislature.
“Since Chandigarh is a Union Territory and does not have a legislature, the Government of India is accountable to Parliament for its governance,” he said, adding that the government appeared to be suffering from “selective amnesia”.
Citing information he said he had received from informed sources, Tewari claimed that Chandigarh currently has around 164 medical officers, 28 senior medical officers and approximately 29 dental SMOs, taking the total number of doctors to about 221. Of these, he alleged, around 180 have been brought on deputation from outside, leaving only about 41 doctors locally recruited or otherwise deployed.
The MP said the “short shrift” given to a detailed parliamentary question indicated serious gaps and inadequacies in Chandigarh’s health infrastructure.
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Tewari added that Chandigarh’s health infrastructure serves not only the UT but also patients from Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh, making the issue more pressing.
He said he would personally take up the matter with Union Health Minister JP Nadda and seek a fuller response from the government.
“Obfuscation and dissimulation and not giving the desired information to Parliament constitutes a breach of privilege,” Tewari said, adding that he would pursue the matter further.
