Maharashtra Governor Vidyasagar Rao on February 14 inaugurated the Interdisciplinary Medical Summit 'MEDINSPIRE 2019' organised at Navi Mumbai.

Governor Rao was awarded the honorary doctorate by the D Y Patil University in the presence of Maharashtra Health Minister Eknath Shinde, former Governor of Bihar and Tripura, MP Dr Shrikant Shinde, Dr D Y Patil, and other dignitaries. Speaking during the event, the Governor expressed serious concern that lifestyle diseases, particularly diabetes and hypertension, are affecting the country by posing serious challenge to public health.

In his speech, the Governor said "among the various fields closely associated with the health, well-being and wellness of people,the medical field has witnessed maximum advancements, some of which are simply mind-boggling." He further said "thanks to improvement in the standard of living of the people since Independence and especially to advancements in healthcare,the average life expectancy of the people of India which was just about 32 years at the time of Independence in the year 1947,has gone up to a respectable 70 years. People are living longer and living better."

"However, this respectable figure obscures an important fact that quality healthcare is neither accessible uniformly nor affordable to the large majority of our population even today, "remarked the Governor. The Governor stated that with a view to make medical facilities available to all citizens, the Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently launched the most ambitious healthcare programme Ayushman Bharat also known as Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Abhiyan(PMJAY).

Hailing the PMJAY as the "most significant step towards realizing the goal of Health for All",the Governor asserted that "within just 5 months of its launch, the Scheme has benefited several thousands of people, especially the poor, from across the country." Continuing his speech,the Governor said "lifestyle diseases, particularly diabetes and hypertension are causing a great havoc in our country by posing serious challenge to public health. India is emerging as the Diabetes Capital of the World. It is estimated that one-third of the global diabetic population is Indian."

The Governor corroborated his concern for increasing cases of Diabetes in India by citing the data from the International Diabetes Federation(IDF), according to which,India is currently home to over 61 million people with diabetes. "By 2030,India's diabetes burden is expected to cross the 100 million mark.One million Indians die every year due to diabetes related complications", added the Governor.
Terming Diabetes as a "global challenge", the Governor said "the medical fraternity must find ways and means to address it effectively and in a holistic manner.

Speaking further, the Governor mulled "there is another side to India’s increased life expectancy. According to the 2011 population census, India has 104 million elderly people having age of 60 and above. India’s population is expected to rise from 1.3 billion today to an estimated 1.7 billion by 2050 surpassing China.With elderly population increasing steadily, there will be a growing threat of chronic diseases."

"We need advice and recommendations from this gathering to address the challenge of health issues of the elderly people so that we may improve the quality of their life," lamented the Governor. The Governor called upon the medical fraternity to counter false information and messages relating to the medical field flowing on the social media and post correct information wherever possible.
"This will save at least a few more lives," stressed the Governor.

He congratulated Health Minister Eknath Shinde for starting 28 'Memory Clinics' in various districts of Maharashtra.These 'Memory Clinic' will tackle the problem of Alzeimer’s disease and Dementia. "We have to attach greater attention to tackling mental illnesses and remove the stigma around such diseases," appealed the Governor.