The Assam Public Health Act, 2010
###### Registered No. 768/97

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## THE ASSAM GAZETTE

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#### EXTRA ORDINARY

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#### PUBLISHED BY THE AUTHORITY

###### T? 127 f ¥ l^ , WSkTR, 7 OT, 2010, 17 W 4, 1932 (T^)
 No.127 Dispur, Friday, 7th May, 2010, 17th Vaisakha, 1932 (S.E.)

 GOVERNMENT OF ASSAM

 ORDERS BY THE GOVERNOR

 LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT "LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

 NOTIFICATION

 The 7th May, 2010.

 No. LGL.105/2009/12 -- The following Act ofithe Assam Legislative Assembly which received
 the assent of the Governor is hereby published for general information.

 ASSAM ACT NO. XII OF 2010

 (Received the assent of the Governor on 29-04-2010)


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###### 984 THE ASSAM GAZETTE, EXTRAORDINARY, MAY 7,2010

 AN

 ACT

**Preamble** to provide for protection and fulfillment of rights in relation to
health and well- being, health equity and justice, including those
related to all the underlying departments of health as well as health
care and for achieving the goal of health for all and for matters
connected therewith or incidental thereto.

Whereas every human being is entitled to enjoyment of the

highest attainable standard of health and well-being, conducive to
living a life in dignity;

And whereas right to health is an inclusive right extending

not only to timely and appropriate health care but also to the
underlying socio-economic. cultural and environmental

determinants of health;

And whereas the persisting inequities and denials in the

matter of health in the State are a concern to a ll;

And whereas there is also a need to set a broad legal

framework for providing essential public services and functions,
including powers to respond to public health emergencies;

It is hereby enacted in the Sixty-first Year of the Republic of

India as follows:-

**CHAPTER-I**

PRELIMINARY

**Short title,** 1. (1) This Act may be called the Assam Public Health Act, 2010.

**extent and**
**commencement** (2) It extends to the whole of Assam.

(3) It shall come into force on such date as

the Government may, by notification in the official Gazette,
appoint.

**Definitioai** 2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, -

(a) **affordable” means that which can be secured by every person**


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THE ASSAM GAZETTE, EXTRAORDINARY, MAY 7.2010
985

without reducing that person’s capacity to acquire other
essential goods and sei vices, including food, water, sanitation,
housing, health services and education;

(b) **“capacity to consent”** means ability of an individual,

including a minor or a person with mental disability, assessed
by the relevant health service provider on an objective basis,
to understand and appreciate the nature and consequences of a
proposed health care or of a proposed disclosure of health
related information, and to make an informed decision in
relation to such health care or disclosure ;

**(c) “communicable diseases”** means illness caused by micro­

organisms and transmissible from an infected person or animal
to another person or animal;

(d) **“endemic”** means diseases prevalent in or peculiar to a

particular locality, region, or people ;

(e) **“epidemic”** means occurrence of cases of disease in excess of

what is usually expected for a given period of time, and
includes any reference to ■‘’disease outbreak” ;

(f) **“Government” means the Government of Assam ;**
(g) **“health care”** means testing, treatment, care, procedures and

any other service or intervention towards a therapeutic,
nursing, rehabilitative, palliative, convalescent, preventive,
diagnostic, and/or other health related purpose or

combinations thereof, including reproductive health care and
emergency medical treatment, in any system of medicine ;

(h) **“health care establishment”** means the whole or part of a

public or private institution, facility, building or place,
whether for profit or not, that is operated to provide inpatient
and/or outpatient health care, and a “public health care
establishment” shall accordingly refer to a health care
establishment set up, run, financed or controlled by the
Government or privately owned ;

(i) **“health nuisance”** means a situation, or a state of affairs, that

endangers life or health or adversely affects the well-being of
a person or community ;

(j) **“health research”** means any research which contributes to

knowledge of

(i) biological, clinical, psychological or social
processes in human beings,

(ii) improved methods for health care services,

(iii) human pathology, causes of diseases, effect
of the environment on the human body,

(iv) development or new application of

pharmaceuticals, medicines vaccines etc.,
and

(v) the development of new applications of the
health technology;

and any reference to “research” herein shall mean the
same unless specifically stated otherwise;

(k) **“human body substances”** mean substances of human body


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###### 986 THE ASSAM GAZETTE, EXTRAORDINARY, MAY 7,2010

that may be collected for reasons related to health care like
blood, blood products, semen, other body fluids, ova, sperms,
bones, teeth, tissues, organs, embryos and any reference to
“substances of body” shall mean the same ;

(l) “informed consent” n eans consent given, specific to a

proposed health care, without any force, undue influence,
fraud, threat, mistake or misrepresentation and obtained after

disclosing to the person giving consent, either for himself/
herself, or in representative capacity where necessary, all
material information including costs, risks, benefits and other
significant implications of, and alternatives to, the proposed
health care in a ianguage and manner understood by such
person ;

(m) “life-style related diseases” means diseases associated with

the way a person or group of people lives, including lifestyle
diseases like atherosclerosis, cardio-vascular diseases, stroke,
diabetes, hypertension ;

(n) “municipality” means Municipality and Municipal

Corporations existing in different districts of the State ;

(o) “Order” means subsidiary legislation dealing with specific

persons or cases and shall refer to orders issued under and by
the mandate of this A ct;

... (p) “Panchavati Raj Institution” means institutions of local self-

government established under the States’ Panchayati Raj laws,

such as Gram Panchayat, Anchalik Panchayat and Zilla

Parishad, and/or any reference to “PRIs” shall mean the same ;

(q) “prescribed” means as prescribed by rules made under this

A ct;

(r) “public health emergency” means an unusual or unexpected

occurrence or imminent threat of illness which affects or
likely to affect a large population which needs immediate
Public Health intervention to prevent death or disability to a
large number of people ;

(s) “public health emergency of international concern” means

a public health emergency which is determined, under specific
procedures under International Health Regulations, to

constitute a public health risk to other countries that
potentially requires a coordinated international response ;

(t) “universal precautions” means infection control measures

that prevent exposure to or reduce the risk of transmission of
pathogenic agents and includes education, training, use of
personal protective equipment such as gloves, gowns and
masks, hand washing, and employing work practices ;

(u) “User” means person who seeks, accesses or receives any

health care, as outpatient or inpatient, from any health care
establishment, facility or provider, public or private, which
operates for profit or not;

(v) “vulnerable and marginalized individuals or groups”

means individuals who require special attention due to their
being disadvantaged on account of physical, social, economic


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###### THE ASSAM GAZETTE, EXTRAORDINARY, MAY 7.2010 987

conditions and who are deemed as requiring special attention
by virtue of any act in force in the state.

**CHAPTER-n**

OBI -1GATIONS OF GOVERNMENT IN THE HEALTH AND FAMILY

WELFARE DEPARTMENT IN RELATION TO HEALTH

**Obligations or** 3. (1) Government in the Health and Family Welfare Department
**the State**
**Government in** have the following general obligations at all times, within the
**the Health and** limits of their available resources, towards the progressive
**Family Welfare**
**Department** realization of health and well being of every person in the state

(a) Undertake app opriate and adequate budgetary

measures, to the extent possible as per the globally
accepted norms, to satisfy, the obligations and rights
set out herein, for ensuring planning and rational
allocation and distribution of resources for various
health and health related issues and concerns ;

(b) Provide access to health care services and ensure that

there shall not be any denial of health care directly or
indirectly, to anyone, by any health care service

provider, public or private, including for profit and not
for profit service providers, by laying down minimum
standards and appropriate regulatory mechanism;

Provided that notwithstanding the above, the Government

in the Health and Family Welfare Department shall have a duty to
prioritize the most vulnerable and marginalized persons and
groups, who are unable themselves to access the means for
adequate and appropriate health care services, and ensuring them
at least the minimum conditions of health care,

(2) Government in the Health and Family Welfare Department,

in order to meet its obligation, shall coordinate with other
relevant departments for providing,-

(a) access to the minimum essential food which is

nutritionally adequate;

(b) adequate supply of safe drinking water;
(c) sanitation through appropriate and effective

sewerage and drainage systems, waste disposal and
management systems, pollution control systems,
control of ecological degradation, control of insects
and rodents and other carriers of infections,
addressing practices resulting in unhygienic disposal
of human excreta and refuse, consumption of
unhygienic water or food and through other

measures;

(d) access to basic housing and access to basic facilities.


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988--------------- THE ASSAM GAZETTE, EXTRAORDINARY, MAY 7,2010__________ .

(3) Government in the I leakh and Family Welfare Department

shall also carry out the following as their obligations to ensure
health and well being of all

(a) safeguard the rights related to health care as laid down

under this A ct;

(b) take effective measures to prevent, treat and control

epidemic and endemic diseases ;

(c) lay down specific standards and norms for safety and

quality assurance of ail aspects of health care including
health care services and processes, treatment protocols,
infrastructure, equipment, drugs, health care

providers, within the Government, private and other
non-governmert sectors:

Provided that the Government in the Health and

Family Welfare Department shall endeavour to adopt
for itself the Indian Public Health Standards (IPHS) for
the Health Institutions under its control and the Semi­
Government as well as Private Nursing Homes /
Health establishments etc. and may review and

expand such standards in scope and contents to suit
the needs of the State of Assam;

(d) provide education and access to information

concerning the mam health issues to the communities,
including methods of preventing and controlling them,

and promoting healthy lifestyles, through sustained,
and regularly updated national, State and local level

1EC programmes;

(e) expand mother and child health including

reproductive health care for universal coverage at the
earliest;

(f) provide appropriate and best available preventive

measures against the major infectious diseases

occurring in communities ; and

(g) take effective measures in situations of public health

emergencies;

**Other** **4** Government in the Health and Family Welfare Department

**obligations of**
**the State** shall take appropriate legal steps, including, where necessary,
**Government in** enactment of laws, or review or amend existing public health
**the Health and**
**Family Welfare** related laws, and/or strict implementation of laws, but in any

**Department 1** case, through its powers to issue rules and orders under this

Act, to specifically address the following

(a) fixing responsibility and accountability of concerned

departments/agencies in case of repeated outbreaks or
recurrence of communicable, viral and waterborne
diseases which are found in a particular area and
proved to be due to failure to improve sanitation and
safe drinking water facilities;

(b) public health emeigencies of national concerns ;


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###### THE ASSAM GAZETTE, EXTRAORDINARY, MAY 7,2010 989

(c) registration i f births and deaths and other vital

statistics for health;

(d) food safety in the hospitals and health establishments

managed by the Government;

(e) safety, availability and accessibility of drugs, rational

use of drugs and monitoring of drug resistance ;

(f) population stabilization and family planning ;
(g) regulation of Health establishments and all the

facilities providing health services ;

(h) prevention of Health nuisances and implementation of

bio-medical waste disposal;

(i) availability and accessibility of safe drinking water in

the hospitals and l ealth establishments ;

(j) sanitation and environmental hygiene, including waste

management for every kind of waste in the hospitals
and health establishments ;

(k) health Impact Assessment (HIA) of all new

development projects ;

(l) lifestyle related diseases; mental illness, widely

prevalent diseases; public health related factors like
use of tobacco, alcoholism and other substance abuse,
and consumption of unhealthy foods; and promotion of
healthy lifestyles like breast feeding, health seeking
behaviour, balanced diet, regular exercise, food and
water safety, including with regard to their packaging,

labeling, advertising and sales and consumer

protection, including regulating advertising and

taxation and excise policies that have impact on these ;

(m) identify various types of health institutions including

Tea garden hospitals available in the State and
prescribe services to be provided by them;

(n) specify the class or group of patients who will be

given free treatment in private health establishments ;

(o) provision of Geriatric/Palliative care/Mother and

Child care and Trauma/Emergency care:

Provided that all hospitals or Health establishments

of the State whether Government or Private including
Private Nursing Homes shall have to provide free
health care services maintaining appropriate protocol
of treatment for first 24 hours to an emergency patient
of any kind.

(p) early universalisation of coverage of immunization

for mother and child ;

(q) formation of Patient Welfare Societies (Rogi Kalyan

Samiti) for various categories of Health Institutions ;

(r) promotion of Indian Systems of medicine(ISM) ;
(s) to devise, adopt, implement, and periodically review,

health policies, strategies and plans of action, on the
basis of epidemiological, sociological and

environmental evidence, addressing the health


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###### 990 THE ASSAM GAZETTE, EXTRAORDINARY, MAY 7, 2010

concerns of the vhole population;

(t) prescribe retried al measures in case a patient fails to

receive attention in a Government hospital/health
establishment be ause of absence of the Doctors or any
other medical staff;

(u) suggest and prescribe suitable schedule of inspection

of Government/private health institutions by various
health functionaries;

**CHAPTER-11I**

COLLECTIVE AND INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS IN RELATION TO HEALTH

**Right to Health** 5. Every person shall have the right to -

(a) appropriate health care, and health care related functional

equipment and other infrastructure, ambulance services,
trained medical and professional personnel, and essential
drugs;

(b) reproductive health services and sexual health care with

special emphasis for women and girls;

(c) (i) registration of births and deaths and other vital statistics for

health,
(ii) food safety in the hospitals and health establishments

managed by government or by Private owners,

(iii) safety, availability and accessibility of drugs, rational use

of drugs and monitoring of drug resistance,

(iv) population stabilization and family planning,
(v) regulate all Health establishments and all the facilities

providing health services as prescribed by rules,

(vi) immunity from Ht ilth nuisances and bio-medical waste,

(vii) availability and accessibility of safe drinking water in

the hospitals and health establishments,

(ix) sanitation and environmental hygiene, including waste

management for every kind of waste,

(x) right to effective measures for prevention treatment
and control of epidemic and endemic diseases,

(xi) right to effective mechanism in public health

emergencies,

(xii) right to specified recognized standards and norms for
safety and quality assurance of all aspects of health
care,

(xiii) right to education and access to information

concerning main public health issues in the

community,

(xiv) right to appropriate and efficacious medicines.

**User’s right to** 6. (a) Every user has the right to information about, access to and
**information**

use of health care facilities, services, programmes, conditions
and technologies.


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###### THE ASSAM GAZETTE, EXTRAORDINARY, MAY 7,2010 991

(b) Every user has trie . ght to be fully informed about his / her

health status including the medical facts about his / her health
condition, required health care, together with the potential
risks and benefits, costs and consequences generally

associated with each option of health care, alternatives to the
proposed health care, including the implications, risks and
effects of refusal of health care; and the diagnosis, prognosis
and progress of health care; and any other information that
may be pertinent to the user in taking a decision, providing
consent or to understand his current and possible future health
status. Information is to be provided in ethical manner and
with human approach :

(c) Every user has the right to have the information

communicated to him in a way appropriate to the latter’s
capacity for understanding, with minimum use of unfamiliar
or complicated technical terminology.

(d) Every user has the right to choose the person to be informed

on his behalf;

(e) Every user has a right to obtain a second and more opinion

from another health service provider ;

(f) When admitted to a health care establishment, every user has a
right to be informed of the Identity and professional status of the
health care provider providing him services and of any rules and
routines of the establishment which would bear on his stay and
care.

**User’s right to** (a) Every user has a right to have the complete medical records of
**medical records**
**and data** at least two years preceding the last date when the service was

used, pertaining to his case, containing the health status,
diagnosis, prognosis, all the details of the health care provided
including the line of treatment, to be maintained by the service
provider, and disclosure of such records or information to
anyone else shall be subject to his rights to confidentially,
privacy and disclosure as elaborated herein under section 9 ;

(b) Every user has the right of access to his medical files and

technical records and to any other files and records pertaining
to his diagnosis, treatment and care (including X-ray,

laboratory reports and other investigation reports) and to
receive a copy of his own files and records or parts thereof;
and

(c ) Every user has a right to request for and to be given a written
summary of his diagnosis, treatment and care and in case of an
inpatient, the complete discharge report at the time of discharge,
which must also include the advised follow-up actions to be taken
by the user.

**User’s right to** (a) Every user has a right to consent as a prerequisite for any
**autonomy and**
**prior voluntary** health care proposed for him, such consent being a prior and
**informed** fully informed consent formed without the exercise of any


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###### 992 THE ASSAM GAZETTE, EXTRAORDINARY, MAY 7,2010

provider proposing it;

(b) Every user has a right tl at the service provider empowers and

facilitates the exercise of his right to consent in the above
manner;

(c) Every user has the right to refuse or to halt a medical

intervention and on his exercising such right, the implications

of refusing or halting such an intervention must be carefully
explained by the service provider to the user, provided that the
refusal or halting comes to the knowledge of the provider;

(d) When a user is unable to express his consent due to medical

reasons or his authorized representative or close relative is
absent or is unable to offer consent and a medical intervention
is urgently needed in saving the user’s life, the consent of the
user may be presumed ;

(e) Every user who lacks the full capacity to give consent, due to

his being a minor or due to any mental disability, temporary
or permanent, shall, to the extent of incapacity, have the right
to be supported (or substituted, only where absolutely
necessary) by a decision-making on his behalf, through a _de_

_jure_ or _de facto guardian,_ next friend or personal

representative, whose credentials are clear to the service
provider;

(f) Every user also has right to consent for the preservation and

use of all substances of his body (through consent may be
presumed when the substances are to be used in the current
course of diagnosis, treatment and care of that user); and for
participation in clinical or scientific teaching and / or research;

(g) In any case, no user shall be provided any health care for

experimental or bio-medical or clinical research purposes,
except according to g' idelines laid down by the Indian
Council for Medical Research (ICMR) and unless -

(i) it is in association with a health establishment that has

been licensed under Assam Health Establishment Act, Assam Act

X V III of

1993 as required therein;

1993

(ii) the Institutional Ethics Committee as laid down by the

prescribed guidelines, has given prior written

authorization for the commencement and continuation of
such health care; and

(iii) the user has been given prior information in the

prescribed manner that the health care is for

experimental or research purposes or part of an
experimental or research project, and he has given
informed consent as per the requirements of relevant
earlier provisions herein.

**User's right to** 9. (a) Every user has the right that all information about his health
**confidentiality,Information** status, medical condition, diagnosis, prognosis and health care
**disclosure,** and all other information of a personal kind (identified or
**privacy**

identifiable to him ), must be kept confidential, even after his


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###### THE ASSAM GAZETTE, EXTRAORDINARY, MAY 7,2010 993

death, and such confidential information can only be disclosed
if the user gives explicit consent or any law expressly provides
for this; it may be used for study, teaching or research only
with the authorization of ihe user, the head of the health care
establishment concerned and the Institutional Ethics

Committee of the establishment.

**Duties of users** 10. Every user has the following duties

(i) To provide health care providers with the relevant and

accurate information for health care, subject to the user’s
right to confidentiality and privacy ;

(ii) To comply with the prescribed health care, subject to the

same having been administered after duly observing the
user’s rights as enumerated above ; and

(iii) To sign a discharge certificate or release of liability if he

or she refuses to accept recommended treatment ;

(iv) To ensure that the premises occupied by the user are kept

clean and indulge in no activity that pollutes the
atmosphere physically or otherwise.

**Rights to health** 11. (i) Every health care provider has the right of protection from
**care vis-a-vis users:providers** complaints relating to any adverse consequences for providing

his services of any kind as long as the provider has acted
bonafide to the best of his professional capability and

judgment, and in the best interests of the user, and exercised

all reasonable care;

(ii) Every health care provider has a right to be treated with

respect and dignity by the user and to expect the user to
comply with all the duties as enumerated above.

**CHAPTER-IV**

IMPLEMENTATION AND MONITORING MECHANISM

**Establishment of** **| 2 .** A State Public Health Board shall be established by the State

**a Health BoardState** **Public** Government which shall consist of the following, namely

(a) The Chief Secretary, Government of Assam, who shall be

the Chairperson ;

(b) The Principal Secretary, Health and Family Welfare

Department, Government of Assam, who shall be the Co-
Chairperson ;

(c) The Commissioner and Secretary of Health and Family

Welfare Department, Government of Assam, who shall be

the Vice-Chairperson;

(d) The Director of Health Services, Assam who shall be the

Member-Secretary;


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###### 994 THE ASSAM GAZETTE, EXTRAORDINARY, MAY 7,2010

(e) Secretaries or their nominees, in charge of departments of

Public Health Engineering, Panchayat and Rural

Development. Social Welfare, Urban Development,

Guwahati Development Department, Finance, Welfare of
Plains Tribes and backward Classes, Information and Public
Relations, Revenue, Relief and Rehabilitation and Secretary,
Education (Secondary) Department- Members;

(f) Three members of the Assam Legislative Assembly as

nominated by the Government - Members ;

(g) Four non-official members such as public health experts,

representatives of me dical associations, or Non Government
Organizations (NGO ) as nominated by the Government -
Members;

(h) Representative of Cha.rman. Pollution Control Board -

Member.

**Term of office** 13. (a) The appointment of each member of the State Public Health
**of and honorariumMembers,** Board, except the ex-officio appointees, shall be for a period of

**Fund** **of** **the** three years.

**meetings Board** **andetc.** (b) The State Public Health Board may create sub-committees in

**of the Board** order to address specific areas or needs concerning the public

health system.

(c) The State Public Health Board shall meet at least once in six

months.

**Functions of the** 14. The State Public Health Board shall carry out the following
**Board**

functions, namely :-

(a) Formulate and implement State level strategies and plans of

action for the determinants of health, especially food, water,
sanitation and housing ;

(b) Identify the State’s health goals to be included in the

mandate of Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs)/ Autonomous
Council;

(c) To get clinical and medical audits carried out on select

conditions of public health importance, receive relevant
reports and initiate necessary' action.

(d) Institute systems of confidential inquiry into deaths to

identify and analyse the failures of health systems, towards

systemic improvements;

(e) Establish and implement performance standards, measures,

capacities and process for health care infrastructure, service
providers, quality or performance improvement that are
required for achieving the objectives of this A ct;

(f) Make available, at all levels of health care, essential and

rational drugs that are listed in the National List of Essential
Medicines and/or the latest Model List of Essential Drugs of
WHO, and promoting rational drug use;

(g) Develop public health IEC infrastructure and programmes

for mass public health campaigns and activities, with


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###### THE ASSAM GAZETTE. EXTRAORDINARY, MAY 7,2010 995

institutionalized involvement of educational institutions,
non-governmental organizations, community based

organizations, associations of medical providers, traditional
health care practitioners, mass media including privately
owned mass media, and all stakeholders in promotion of
public health;

(h) Formulate and implement human resources development

plans to ensure availability, efficiency and regular capacity
building of health care providers, commensurate with the
public health needs of the State ;

(i) Develop and implement capacity building plans for all the

bodies anti committees being set up at various levels under
this A ct;

(j) Develop mechanisms for initiating public-private partnership

in implementation of public health programmes that ensure
equity and quality of health care services;

(k) Develop mechanisms for creating and empowering

decentralized monitoring committees at all levels, both rural
and urban and seeking their feedback in structured manner;

(l) Ensure coordination between all the public health related

authorities and agencies within the health services in the
rural areas and municipal health services in the urban areas;

(m) Ensure coordination with other Government departments,

agencies and with the Central Government for handling
public health emergencies ;

(n) Coordinate with the relevant Government departments and

agencies to ensure availability and access to adequate and
safe food, water, sanitation and housing throughout the State;

(o) Review the existing laws and policies of State Government

that are related to health/ public health, to determine
compliance with this act and make recommendations for
reform I amend or repeal where necessary ; and

(p) Appoint committees and sub- committees to address

technical aspects of specific areas or needs for above or other
similarly relevant purposes or any other mandate of State
Government, on such terms as it may deem fit, involving
dissolving, removing or streamlining any of the existing
ones.

**District** **Public** 15. A District Public Health Board shall be established by the

**Health board**

Government which shall consist of the following, namely

(a) The Deputy Commissioner of the District / Principal

Secretary of the Autonomous Council in the Sixth Schedule
districts or his nominee shall be the Chairperson;

(b) Chief Executive Officer, Zila Parishad in non Sixth Schedule

Districts and Chief Executive Member in Sixth Schedule
Districts, or his representative shall be the Co-Chairperson.

(c) The Joint Director of Health Services of the concerned

district shall be the Member - Secretary.


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THE ASSAM GAZETTE. EXTRAO am[MARY. MAY 7.2010]

(d) Senior most Engineer at District level from Public Health

Engineering Department. President/Chairman, Zila Parishad,
District Social Welfare Officer, Project Director DRDA,
Deputy Director Town and Planning Commission,

Chairperson or his nominee of Municipal Corporation,
Programme Officer of ICDS, Project Director IPDP, Director
D1PR - Members.

(e) Four non official members from NGOs, Health experts etc.to

be nominated by the Deputy Commissioner/ Principal
Secretary of Autonomous Councils of the Sixth Schedule
districts as the case may be.

**Functions of the** The District Public Health Board shall carry out the following
**District** **Public**

**Health Board** functions, namely

(a) Organize hearing of the beneficiaries coming to the hospital

once in a year with a view to improve the health care
services ;

(b) Formulate and implt ment strategies and plans of action for

the determinants of health, especially food, water, sanitation
and housing for the district;

(c) Ensure coordination between all the public health institutions

of the district;

(d) Coordinate with other Government departments and agencies

for handling public health emergencies ;

(e) Coordinate with the relevant Government departments and

agencies to ensure availability and access to adequate and
safe food, water, sanitation and housing throughout the
district; and

(f) To carry out such other activities as may be entrusted by the

State Health Board in order to achieve the objectives of the
Act.

**Monitoring** 17. The Government shall establish an intensive accountability
**mechanism** **by**

**the Government** framework through the following method of monitoring

**(i) Health Information System (HIS):**

(a) The Government shall facilitate and co-ordinate the

establishment, implementation and maintenance of
health information systems at different levels;

(b) The Government shall, for the purpose of creating,

maintaining or adopting database within the state
health information system, prescribe categories or
kinds of data for submission, data collection,

indicators, manner, and formats in which and by whom
the data must be compiled or collated and must be
submitted to the national as well as state department in
a technically and institutionally sound manner;

(c) Every public or private health establishment, which

provides health care or any health services, and every


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###### THE ASSAM GAZETTE, EXTRAORDINARY, MAY 7,2010 997

other relevant agency must establish and maintain a
health information system as part of the national and
state health information system envisaged herein ;

(d) All the data, in the form it is collected as well as after

analysis through the health information system, in
disaggregated as well as aggregated forms, must be

fully accessible to all members of the general public

and the Government must also take proactive measures
to publish and disseminate it to people so as to enhance
their effective participation on the health related
decisions :

Provided that all the routine health reports

prepared and submitted at every level, along with the
forms filled towards that, shall be shared with the PRIs
at all times :

Provided also that State Government may by

rules prohibit disclosures of certain category of
data/information which is not of public interest;

(e) The Government may by rules lay down specific

provisions for convergence and integration of all health
related data; preventing duplication of data collection
or other reasons for waste of resources; ensuring
maximum access to the data, including through use of
web technology electronic data base and to resolve
other related technology issues; cost-effectiveness of
the health information systems including through
appropriate software; and for effective dissemination of
the health information.

(ii) Government Monitoring : Government shall have a

monitoring system to monitor, -

(a) annual financial audits of the health systems at State

and districts levels by the Comptroller & Auditor
General (CAG) as well as by a chartered accountant
and any special audit that may be deemed fit by the
Government, by agencies like the Indian Public
Auditors, with the help and under the supervision of
one or more research and resource institutions in the
State, that shall be contracted for this purpose ;

(b) system of mandatory audits of medical records by

every health care establishment and institution, public
or private ;

(c) system of mandatory audits into maternal and child

deaths as well as any other unusual death, by every
health establishment and institution, public or private ;

(d) mandatory requirement for all the health care

institutions and establishments to prominently display
information regarding the Indian Public Health
Standards (IPHS) in various respects; the charter of
users’ rights; charter of citizens grants received by


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###### 998 THE ASSAM GAZETTE, EXTRAORDINARY. MAY 7, 2010

the institutions; medicines and vaccines in stock;
services provided to the users, user charges to be paid
(if any), as envisaged in the Right to Information Act;
and the monitoring of performance of the institutions
and establishments on such parameters;

(e) engage autonomous institutions with professional

expertise and functional and administrative autonomy
to conduct independent surveys to periodically assess
the progress made on key health parameters;
effectiveness of various health initiatives; status in
health equity and access to quality health services
including costs of health care and impact of health
care costs on poverty; track public expenditure on
health care; and the Government, as advised by the
respective health boards which shall lay down
regulations for their functioning.

**(iii) Community based monitoring : - The** monitoring methods
under clauses (i) and (ii) shall involve the communities as active co­
facilitators articulating their needs, helping in identification of key
indicators and creation of tools for monitoring, providing feedback,

as well as validating the data-collected by these methods.

**Objectives of the** 18. (i) The monitoring system .-'•hall focus on concurrent monitoring to
**monitoring**
**system** the maximum extent possible and shall be linked with and based

on detailed quality assurance system with specific monitorable
indicators and benchmarks;

(ii) The monitoring system shall be directly linked, on an ongoing

basis, to corrective decision making bodies which shall be
constituted by the State Government at various levels so that the
information and issues emerging from monitoring are

communicated to the relevant official bodies responsible for
taking action and that the monitoring results in prompt, effective
and accountable remedial action and is also fed into policy
making and planning for future improved performance.

(iii) The Governments shall ensure an integrated and human rights

based approach to monitoring through effective access to and
sharing of related information among Government institutions at
all levels and among Government, people and non-govemment
institutions; multi-sectoral analysis of available data and
information; their comprehensive interpretation and analysis
from human rights perspective and broad dissemination of
monitoring outputs among institutions and within civil society.


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###### THE ASSAM GAZETTE, EXTRAORDINARY, MAY 7.2010 999

**CI1 APTER-V**

MISCELLANEOUS

**Power to** nuikr |9 (]) The Government may in consultation with the respective
**Rules**

Public Health Boards, within twelve months from the date of

coming into force of this Act make necessary rules not

inconsistent with the provisions of this Act for carrying out the
purposes of this Act.

(2) The State Government suall also have the power to enforce the

provisions of this Act by issuance of such orders and other
remedies as are not inconsistent with the provisions of this

A ct:

Provided that this sub-section does not limit

specific enforcemer.i powers of the Government

enumerated under this Act.

(3) Every rule made under this section shall be laid, as soon as

may be, after it is made, before the Assam Legislative
Assembly, while it is in session for a total period of fourteen
days which may be comprised in one session or in two or
more successive sessions and if before the expiry of the
sessions immediately following the session or the successive
sessions aforesaid, the Assam Legislative Assembly agrees in
making any modification in the rules or the Assam Legislative
Assembly agrees that the rules should not be made, the rules
shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or be
of no effect , as the case may be, so however that any such
modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the
validity of anything previously done under the rules.

**CH APT ER-VI**

IMMUNITIES

**Immunity** 20. (1) Notwithstanding anything contrary contained under the

provisions of this Act, neither the Government nor the
Government personnel, experts or agents responsible for
performance of any of the duties and functions under this Act
or any NGO or civil society representative/ member especially
authorized or entrusted by the Government to act under this
Act, shall be held Hable for the death of or any injury caused
to any individual, or damage to property, or violation of any
kind, directly as a result of complying with or attempting to
comply with this Act or any rule made thereunder.
Furthermore, nothing in this Act shall be construed to impose
liability on State or local public health agency for the acts or

omissions of a private sector partner unless explicitly
authorized by law.

(2) (a) No action for damages lies or may be brought against any

official of the State Government because of anything done or
omitted in good faith in the performance or purported
performance of any duty under this Act, or in the exercise or
purported exercise of any power under this Act.


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###### 1000_________ THE ASSAM GAZETTE, EXTRAORDINARY, MAY 7,2010

(b) No person who is a superior or supervisory officer over

his/her subordinate official o f the Government who
violates any part of this Act, except in cases o f gross
negligence, shall be subject to civil remedies under this
Act on the theory o f vicarious liability, unless such

superior or supervisory official had prior actual or
constructive knowledge of the violation or actions leading
to the violation; and/or was otherwise directly responsible
for ensuring against the occurrence o f the violation :

Provided that this shall not absolve the

Government from vicarious liability for an act or omission
for which it would be vicariously liable if this section were
not in force.

###### MOHD. A. HAQUE
 Secretary to the Govt, of Assam,
 Legislative Department, Dispur.

GUWAHATI - Printed and Published by the Dy. Director (P&S), Directorate of Ptg. and Sty., Assam, Guwahati-21

(Ex-Gazette) No. 253-500+600-7-5-2010.


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