BHASHINI Partners with NHA to Enable Multilingual AI Across Ayushman Bharat Platforms

In a major step toward inclusive, AI-enabled digital healthcare, the Digital India BHASHINI Division (DIBD) under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has partnered with the National Health Authority (NHA) to integrate multilingual and voice-enabled language technologies across India's flagship digital health platforms.

The collaboration was formalised through the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) during the Chintan Shivir – National Review of Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY) and Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM), held on 19 January 2026 in Bhubaneswar, Odisha.

The national review meeting was organised by the National Health Authority and brought together senior officials from Union and State Governments, technical institutions and implementing agencies to assess progress and accelerate adoption of digital public health infrastructure across the country.

Multilingual AI to Strengthen Last-Mile Healthcare Access

A key highlight of Day 1 of the Chintan Shivir was the MoU between NHA and BHASHINI, which will enable AI-powered multilingual translation and speech technologies across NHA's digital platforms, including AB PM-JAY and ABDM.

Under the partnership, BHASHINI's language stack—covering translation APIs, speech-to-text, text-to-speech and voice interfaces—will be integrated into beneficiary-facing and administrative applications, significantly improving accessibility for citizens across linguistic and geographic boundaries.

The MoU was exchanged during the inaugural session in the presence of senior leadership from the Government of Odisha, National Health Authority, and partner institutions.

Driving Inclusive Digital Health at Scale

The deliberations were aligned with the national objective of advancing AI-driven digital health solutions while ensuring that technology adoption remains inclusive, usable and citizen-centric.

The review meeting opened with a welcome address by the Secretary, Health, Government of Odisha, followed by opening remarks by the CEO, National Health Authority. The inaugural session was graced by Shri Mukesh Mahaling, Minister for Health, Government of Odisha, as the Chief Guest.

The occasion also witnessed the launch of the Health Benefit Package Manual and a Compendium of Best Practices under AB PM-JAY, along with the exchange of MoUs with multiple partner institutions.

Language AI as a Public Health Enabler

Speaking at the event, Shri Amitabh Nag, CEO, Digital India BHASHINI Division, highlighted the growing role of artificial intelligence in strengthening digital health systems.

"As digital health platforms scale nationwide, AI adoption becomes a natural progression. In a linguistically diverse country like India, AI must be multilingual and voice-enabled so that language does not become a barrier to accessing healthcare," he said.

He noted that language AI can significantly enhance citizen engagement, grievance redressal, clinical documentation and the overall usability of digital public health platforms.

Improving Doctor Efficiency and Health Records

During the deliberations, Shri Kiran Gopal Vaska, Joint Secretary, ABDM, highlighted the operational benefits of language AI in healthcare delivery.

He said AI-enabled tools such as voice-to-text and natural language processing can help address time constraints faced by doctors, enable smoother patient-doctor interactions and allow automatic creation of electronic health records, thereby improving efficiency and strengthening digital health systems.

Responsible, Secure and Scalable Integration

Under the MoU, the Digital India BHASHINI Division will support NHA in deploying secure, multilingual and voice-enabled solutions, with provisions for:

• Responsible data governance

• Secure system integration

• Continuous improvement of language models through real-world usage and feedback

The collaboration aligns with the Government of India's broader vision of integrating Indian languages into Digital Public Infrastructure and advancing citizen-centric, AI-enabled governance in the health sector.

With this partnership, India's digital health ecosystem takes a decisive step toward ensuring that no citizen is left behind due to language barriers, reinforcing the inclusive spirit of Ayushman Bharat.