Right to Health Workshop for Northern Region

JGU, in collaboration with All India People’s Science Network (AIPSN), organised the Right to Health Workshop for the northern regional states of India from November 30 to December 3 at the Society for Technology and Development Center, Nagwain, Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh. The workshop was conducted as part of the Health Finance Fragmentation study, a global collaborative research project between Imperial College, London, and JGU, which is led by Prof. Indranil Mukhopadhyay of Jindal School of Government and Public Policy (JSGP).

The workshop was an attempt to ensure community participation and engagement in global health research while empowering the communities, civil society, health rights, and public health discourse. Overall, the workshop fostered the discourse on strengthening primary healthcare, bringing in greater accountability and developing an in-depth understanding of various contours of health rights in the region to pave ways for supporting grassroots campaigns.

Through numerous interactive sessions and group activities, the four-day workshop invoked discussions on multiple facets of public health, such as barriers to access to healthcare, health financing, healthcare for the marginalised community, social determinants of health, the political economy of health, commercialisation of healthcare, issues and challenges in accessing medicines and the role of civil society struggles in the passing of Rajasthan’s Right to Health Act. Participants were introduced to various health data sources, followed by preparing state factsheets for conducting relevant campaigning in their respective states. Field visits to the Primary Health Care Centre and interaction with the local women from self-help groups helped the participants closely experience the ground reality.

The workshop was attended by 60 researchers, public workers, activists, and young and experienced individuals working on public health from eight northern states, i.e., Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh.