Odisha must not miss India’s allied health workforce opportunity

By Neeraj Mahendroo

India’s allied and healthcare education sector is entering a decisive phase. The National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professions (NCAHP) has begun moving the sector toward a structured, competency-based and nationally-aligned framework. Its curriculum list includes areas such as physiotherapy, optometry, nutrition and dietetics, dialysis therapy, medical radiology and imaging technology, anaesthesia and operation theatre technology, health information management, medical laboratory sciences, occupational therapy, respiratory technology, medical physics and nuclear medicine technology, among others.

This reform momentum was reinforced in the Union Budget 2026–27. While presenting the Budget on February 1, 2026, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced that existing institutions for allied health professionals would be upgraded and new AHP institutions would be established in both government and private sectors. The initiative aims to train one lakh allied health professionals over five years across 10 selected disciplines, including optometry, radiology, anaesthesia, OT technology, applied psychology and behavioural health.

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The national policy direction is clear: India wants to expand allied health education, create skilled employment pathways and strengthen healthcare delivery. For states, this is not only an education-sector opportunity; it is also a healthcare, employment and economic development opportunity.

Essentiality certificates stalled

However, the success of this national initiative depends on whether states can operationalise the approval pathway for new programmes. Under the NCAHP compliance framework for 2026–27, institutions planning to start new allied and healthcare programmes are required to obtain an essentiality certificate from the respective state government or union territory administration before proceeding further.

The essentiality certificate is intended to confirm the need for the proposed programme in the state or region. It allows the state government to examine whether the course is aligned with healthcare demand, infrastructure availability, clinical training capacity and workforce requirements. In principle, this is a sound regulatory step because it supports quality and prevents indiscriminate expansion.

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The concern arises when the EC process itself is not available. Universities seeking to start new allied health programmes in Odisha are facing such a bottleneck. As per the concern raised by institutions, the application pathway for EC has not been opened, preventing universities from submitting applications at the first stage itself.

Odisha has an existing State Council for Allied Medical Science framework and publicly-available information on allied medical science courses, but the specific issue is the non-operational EC route for new NCAHP-aligned programmes.

This creates a serious practical barrier. If universities cannot submit applications, their proposals cannot be examined on merit. Courses cannot move forward for recognition or approval. Infrastructure planning remains uncertain, faculty recruitment is delayed, and hospital partnerships cannot be formalised. Most importantly, students in Odisha may lose access to new career pathways in a sector being actively promoted at the national level.

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Allied Healthcare: ‘Odisha risks falling behind’

The timing is especially important. Allied health is becoming one of the most employment-relevant areas in healthcare. Hospitals, diagnostic centres, rehabilitation services, intensive care units, operation theatres, dialysis units, radiology departments and emergency care systems all require trained allied health professionals. The budget announcement itself recognises the need to expand training capacity in areas such as optometry, radiology, anaesthesia, OT technology, applied psychology and behavioural health.

If other states process EC applications while Odisha’s pathway remains closed, Odisha risks falling behind. Students may be forced to move outside the state for programmes that could be offered locally. Families may face higher costs. Local hospitals may continue to struggle for trained manpower. The state may also miss the opportunity to attract institutional investment in a sector with national and global employment potential.

A constructive way forward is for the Odisha Government to immediately operationalise the EC application mechanism, publish clear guidelines, specify review timelines and allow universities to submit proposals through a transparent process. Opening the portal does not mean automatic approval; it simply allows due process to begin.

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Odisha may also consider forming a task group involving the health and higher education departments, Odisha State Council for Allied Medical Science, universities, hospitals and industry representatives. Such a group can identify priority allied health disciplines based on state healthcare needs, employability and alignment with national workforce goals.

The EC process should serve as a quality gateway, not as a closed gate. Odisha should act quickly to enable deserving institutions to contribute to India’s mission of building a skilled, future-ready allied healthcare workforce.

Neeraj Mahendroo is dean, academics and quality assurance, allied health, Apollo Healthcare Academy, Apollo Knowledge.