India is rapidly expanding the use of artificial intelligence (AI) across its healthcare system to improve access, affordability, disease detection, and patient care. The government says AI-powered technologies are helping bridge gaps in healthcare delivery by supporting early diagnosis, improving medical decision-making, and extending healthcare services to remote and underserved populations.
According to official data, AI tools integrated into national health programmes have already shown measurable impact. Under the National TB Elimination Programme, predictive analytics systems are being used to identify tuberculosis patients who face a high risk of treatment failure. Government estimates suggest these AI-driven interventions have contributed to a 27 per cent reduction in adverse TB outcomes. Automated chest X-ray reading systems known as DeepCXR are also being deployed in several states to help detect presumptive TB cases more efficiently, especially in areas facing shortages of specialist doctors.
The expansion of AI in healthcare is also strengthening India’s telemedicine ecosystem. The e-Sanjeevani platform, one of the country’s largest digital healthcare services, recorded nearly 282 million consultations between April 2023 and November 2025. Of these, around 12 million consultations were assisted by AI-supported diagnostic recommendations that helped doctors streamline patient evaluations and clinical decision-making.
AI is additionally being used in diabetic retinopathy screening programmes. Through the MadhuNetrAI initiative, healthcare workers without specialist training can capture retinal images that are later analysed using artificial intelligence to identify patients requiring urgent eye care. Officials said the system has already benefited thousands of patients across multiple healthcare facilities and has improved access to preventive eye screening in underserved communities.
The government’s broader AI-driven healthcare strategy is being supported by the IndiaAI Mission, approved in 2024 with a budget allocation of more than ₹10,000 crore. The initiative aims to promote inclusive development through AI adoption across sectors including healthcare, agriculture, governance, and education. Officials say healthcare remains one of the mission’s key focus areas because AI can help India manage its large population and shortage of medical specialists more effectively.
NITI Aayog had earlier described AI, robotics, and connected medical devices as a “new nervous system for healthcare,” recognising the transformative potential of technology in improving public health systems. Since then, AI adoption has expanded across cancer care, disease surveillance, nutrition monitoring, insurance fraud detection, and traditional medicine research.
In cancer care, India is developing a national imaging biobank containing more than 20,000 patient profiles to support AI-based research for early cancer detection and disease management. AI-powered anti-fraud systems are also being used under the Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY scheme to detect suspicious insurance claims and improve transparency in healthcare spending.
The country’s digital health infrastructure is playing a major role in enabling AI expansion. Under the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission, hundreds of millions of digital health IDs and electronic health records have already been created, helping healthcare providers improve coordination and continuity of care. Officials believe these digital systems will become the foundation for future AI-enabled healthcare services.
Experts say AI could significantly improve healthcare access in rural India by reducing dependence on specialists and enabling faster diagnosis through automated tools. However, they also caution that strong safeguards around ethics, privacy, data protection, and clinical accuracy will remain essential as AI adoption grows. To address these concerns, the government has introduced ethical guidelines for AI in healthcare and established centres of excellence at institutions such as AIIMS Delhi, PGIMER Chandigarh, and AIIMS Rishikesh.
