NEW DELHI, June 11 -- West Bengal has finally joined the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY), marking the nationwide adoption of the flagship health assurance programme that provides cover of up to Rs.5 lakh per eligible family per year. Mint explains the significance of the state's inclusion in the scheme.

West Bengal was the only state that hadn't come on board the world's largest health assurance programme. The other holdout states Odisha and Delhi joined in 2025.

According to West Bengal's chief secretary Manoj Kumar Agarwal, the new state government that took over on 9 May issued a directive to immediately onboard all pending central government public welfare schemes.

"This directive will positively impact...