Punjab’s Mukh Mantri Sehat Yojana has funded treatment for 560 people experiencing diabetic foot disease and associated complications, giving patients access to medical and surgical interventions intended to prevent infection, tissue loss and avoidable amputation.
According to State Health Agency data reported on 7 September 2026, approximately ₹1.32 crore was spent on the treatment of these patients over nearly eight months. The cases demonstrate how removing financial barriers can enable people to receive care while there is still an opportunity to preserve the foot or limit the extent of tissue loss.
The figures were reported by 5 Dariya News and other Punjab news outlets citing the State Health Agency.
Medical and surgical care covered
Of the 560 patients, 126 underwent surgical management, accounting for ₹44.55 lakh of the reported expenditure. A further 123 received medical management.
Treatment across the wider patient group included:
- Surgical debridement and removal of infected or non-viable tissue
- Prolonged wound dressing and antibiotic therapy
- Toe and foot procedures
- Below-knee procedures
- Skin grafting
- CT and MRI investigations
- Blood and platelet transfusions
- Management of diabetic ketoacidosis, severe sepsis and anaemia
The cases included people with peripheral neuropathy who were unable to feel the initial injury, patients with infections extending into deeper tissue and others whose wounds were not healing because of impaired circulation.
Punjab Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr Balbir Singh said diabetic foot complications can progress silently and eventually threaten both mobility and the limb when treatment is delayed. He emphasised that patients should be able to focus on receiving timely care rather than deciding whether their families can afford it.
The State Health Agency Punjab describes the Mukh Mantri Sehat Yojana as a universal health-coverage initiative offering cashless treatment of up to ₹10 lakh per family annually. It is intended to cover Punjab’s residents without an income ceiling and provides access to secondary and tertiary treatment through empanelled government and private hospitals.
Why diabetic foot disease requires early action
Diabetic foot disease often develops through a combination of peripheral neuropathy, impaired circulation, infection, deformity and repeated mechanical pressure.
A person who has lost protective sensation may continue walking on a blister, callus, wound or foreign object without experiencing the pain that would normally prompt them to stop. Repetitive pressure can then damage the underlying tissue, while impaired blood supply and diabetes-related metabolic factors may delay healing.
Once infection reaches deeper structures or bone, treatment becomes more complex, expensive and time-sensitive. Acute management may require vascular assessment, infection control, debridement, pressure relief, wound care and metabolic stabilisation.
The significance of the Punjab programme therefore extends beyond the 560 treatments. It illustrates the value of making care available before a minor lesion progresses into extensive tissue loss, sepsis or major amputation.
The role of prosthetists and orthotists
CPOs have an important role in the limb-preservation pathway, particularly after the immediate infection and wound-management priorities have been addressed.
Orthotic intervention may include pressure-relieving insoles, extra-depth footwear, custom therapeutic footwear, toe orthoses and devices designed to accommodate deformity or redistribute load away from vulnerable areas. Where surgical treatment results in partial-foot loss or amputation, prosthetists and orthotists can also contribute to protected mobilisation, residual-limb management and longer-term restoration of function.
The International Working Group on the Diabetic Foot recommends regular risk screening, prompt professional treatment of pre-ulcerative lesions and the use of appropriately fitting or therapeutic footwear for people at increased risk. For patients with a healed plantar ulcer, it recommends footwear with a demonstrated pressure-relieving effect to reduce the risk of recurrence.
Effective orthotic care should be based on clinical assessment rather than the routine supply of a standard insole. Important considerations include:
- Protective sensation
- Peripheral arterial supply
- Previous ulceration or amputation
- Foot shape and deformity
- Callus and pre-ulcerative lesions
- Plantar-pressure distribution
- Shoe fit and internal depth
- The patient’s ability to use and inspect the device safely
Regular review is essential because a poorly fitted shoe or orthosis can create new areas of pressure in a foot that may not reliably perceive pain.
From emergency treatment to long-term prevention
Funding hospital treatment is an essential component of limb salvage, but preventing recurrence requires continuity after discharge.
A complete diabetic-foot pathway should connect primary care, diabetology, vascular and orthopaedic surgery, wound care, infectious disease, podiatry, prosthetics and orthotics, physiotherapy and patient education. It should also give patients access to suitable footwear, pressure-relieving devices and scheduled surveillance once the wound has healed.
Outcome reporting would strengthen the value of the Punjab initiative further. In addition to the number and cost of treatments, useful indicators would include healing rates, time to treatment, minor and major amputation rates, ulcer recurrence, footwear provision and return to independent mobility.
The treatment of 560 patients under the Mukh Mantri Sehat Yojana shows what becomes possible when patients can access care without the immediate obstacle of unaffordable hospital costs. The next opportunity is to connect that funded treatment with structured prevention and rehabilitation—helping more people remain ulcer-free, mobile and independent after leaving hospital.
- 5 Dariya News: Mukh Mantri Sehat Yojana Gives 560 Diabetic Foot Patients a Chance to Save Their Limbs
- State Health Agency Punjab: Mukh Mantri Sehat Yojana
- IWGDF 2023 Guidelines
- National Programme for Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases