Shabir Ahmad
The Indian Army’s sustained healthcare outreach programmes continue to make a significant difference in the lives of underprivileged populations living in far-flung and inaccessible areas of Jammu and Kashmir, where access to quality medical facilities remains limited.
Through regular medical camps, mobile health units, and door-to-door outreach initiatives, Army medical teams are providing free consultations, diagnostic services, and medicines to residents of remote villages across the Union Territory. These efforts, officials said, are aimed at bridging critical healthcare gaps while strengthening trust and cooperation with local communities.
Army officials said that specialist doctors, including physicians, paediatricians, and gynaecologists, are routinely deployed to conduct medical camps in high-altitude and border areas, particularly during harsh weather conditions when civilian healthcare services become difficult to access.
In the higher reaches of Jammu and Kashmir, where access to basic healthcare remains a distant dream for many living in remote border villages, the Indian Army has emerged as a steadfast pillar of support.
Through its flagship Operation Sadbhavana (Goodwill), the Army regularly organises free medical camps, delivering essential healthcare services, medicines, and specialist consultations directly to underprivileged communities often isolated by difficult geography and limited infrastructure.
Recent initiatives highlight the Army’s unwavering commitment. Just days ago, earlier this month, the Romeo Force set up a free medical and veterinary camp in the remote Salani village of Poonch district. Residents, many of whom face arduous journeys to reach the nearest health facility, received check-ups, free medicines, and veterinary care for their livestock—a lifeline in agrarian border economies.
Earlier this month, the Indian Army, in collaboration with specialists from the Government Medical College (GMC), conducted a similar medical-cum-veterinary camp in the Keri Sector of Doongi Block, Rajouri district, near the Line of Control (LoC). The camp benefited residents from over ten border villages, offering consultations, treatments, and free medicines to men, women, children, and the elderly.
These efforts are part of a broader, sustained pattern under Operation Sadbhavana, launched in the late 1990s to foster goodwill, national integration, and socio-economic development in sensitive border regions. The programme encompasses healthcare outreach, education through Army Goodwill Schools, infrastructure support, and youth empowerment, with millions of rupees invested over the years.
In remote areas across Poonch, Rajouri, Kishtwar, Kupwara, and beyond, the Army’s medical teams—often including specialists—bridge critical gaps in primary care, maternal health, preventive services, and hygiene awareness. Veterinary components recognise the dependence on livestock for livelihoods, providing free treatment to animals alongside human care.
In recent weeks, several such camps were organised in remote pockets of north, south, and central Kashmir, where hundreds of patients were examined for ailments ranging from respiratory infections and gastrointestinal disorders to chronic diseases such as hypertension and diabetes. Women-specific health issues and child nutrition were also given special attention.
Local residents expressed gratitude for the initiative, saying the Army’s presence had brought much-needed relief. “We have to travel long distances to reach hospitals, which is not always possible, especially in winter. The Army doctors come to our village and treat us free of cost,” said an elderly resident of a remote village in Kupwara district.
Apart from curative care, the Army teams also conducted awareness sessions on hygiene, nutrition, maternal health, and disease prevention. Medicines, spectacles, and basic medical equipment were distributed free of cost to needy patients.
Officials said the outreach programmes also play a crucial role during emergencies and natural calamities, when Army medical units often become the first responders. “In many remote areas, Army medical facilities are the only dependable source of healthcare,” the spokesperson added.
Civil administration officials acknowledged the positive impact of these initiatives, noting that the Army’s healthcare outreach complements government efforts to improve medical access in difficult terrains.
The Indian Army said it would continue to expand such humanitarian and civic action programmes, reaffirming its commitment to the welfare of the people of Jammu and Kashmir and to improving the quality of life in some of the region’s most challenging and remote areas.
