Patients are turning to the new AIIMS hospitals in record numbers. The Health Ministry said on Tuesday that outpatient consultations at the new All India Institutes of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) set up under the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY) nearly tripled in five years, rising from 50 lakh in 2021-22 to 1.45 crore in 2025-26.
In all, the new AIIMS have recorded more than 6 crore OPD consultations since 2021-22, a figure the ministry says shows how fast affordable tertiary care is reaching people outside the big metros.
The numbers behind the rise
The year-wise figures tell a steady story of growth. OPD consultations at the new AIIMS stood at 50.03 lakh in 2021-22. They climbed to 77.95 lakh in 2022-23 and crossed the one-crore mark in 2023-24 at 100.52 lakh. The count rose to 129.98 lakh in 2024-25 and reached 144.96 lakh in 2025-26.
The momentum has carried into the current financial year. In 2026-27, the new AIIMS have already recorded 97.41 lakh OPD patients till October 2026. Adding the five full years to this year’s tally takes the cumulative total to about 6.01 crore consultations between 2021-22 and October 2026.
What PMSSY set out to do
The new AIIMS were created under PMSSY to correct a long-standing imbalance in Indian healthcare: advanced treatment was concentrated in a handful of cities, and patients from smaller towns had to travel long distances for specialist care. The scheme approved 22 new AIIMS in phases across the country, and 18 of them are now fully functional, the ministry said.
These institutes offer outpatient and inpatient care, emergency and trauma treatment, diagnostic facilities, and medical education and research. The ministry said the growing OPD numbers show that people are increasingly using these hospitals for everyday specialist consultations, not just for rare or complex procedures.
More than hospital beds
The expansion has also widened medical education. The new AIIMS have added undergraduate, postgraduate and nursing seats, and several of them have built specialised clinical facilities and advanced healthcare services. For students from smaller towns, that means a chance to train at a national institute without leaving their region.
For patients, the practical change is simpler: a specialist consultation, a diagnostic test or a follow-up visit that once meant a trip to Delhi or another metro can now happen closer to home. That is the gap PMSSY was designed to close, and the OPD data suggests the gap is narrowing.
What it means for patients
High OPD numbers cut both ways. On one hand, they show trust: people are choosing these hospitals for regular care. On the other, they raise a question every growing hospital faces, how to keep waiting times and consultation quality from slipping as footfall rises. The ministry has not shared average waiting times or doctor-to-patient ratios in this update.
What is clear is that demand is not slowing. With 97.41 lakh visits already logged in the first seven months of 2026-27, this year is on course to pass the 2025-26 total. The remaining four approved AIIMS that are not yet fully functional will add further capacity once they open their doors.
What happens next
The ministry said it will keep expanding the network and strengthening services at the new AIIMS. Watch for the next milestones: the remaining four institutes becoming fully operational, and whether the OPD growth rate holds as the base gets bigger. For now, the headline number stands: 1.45 crore consultations in a single year, at hospitals that barely existed a decade ago.
FAQs
How many OPD consultations did the new AIIMS record in 2025-26?
They recorded 144.96 lakh, or about 1.45 crore, OPD consultations in 2025-26, up from 50.03 lakh in 2021-22.
What is the total number of OPD consultations since 2021-22?
The cumulative figure is about 6.01 crore consultations between 2021-22 and October 2026, including 97.41 lakh in 2026-27 so far.
How many new AIIMS have been approved, and how many are fully functional?
Of the 22 new AIIMS approved under PMSSY in various phases, 18 are currently fully functional.
What is PMSSY?
The Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana is the central scheme under which new AIIMS were set up to correct regional imbalances in access to quality tertiary healthcare and to strengthen medical education.
What services do the new AIIMS offer?
They provide OPD and inpatient care, emergency and trauma treatment, diagnostic facilities, medical education and research.
The new AIIMS were built to bring top-tier care closer to home. Five years in, the queues outside their OPDs suggest that is exactly what is happening.
