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CHH. SAMBHAJI NAGAR

Health

Last updated on 26 July 2025. Help us improve the information on this page by clicking on suggest edits or writing to us.

Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar’s healthcare landscape, like many other regions across India, is shaped by a mix of indigenous and Western medical practices. For centuries, communities in the district depended on local healers such as hakims and vaidyas, who treated illnesses using plants, herbs, and other resources found in the surrounding forests and fields. This use of local knowledge and natural remedies formed the base of early healthcare in Satara before formal hospitals were established. Over time, these traditional practices continued alongside the introduction and expansion of more specialized medical services.

Notably, in recent years, Sambhaji Nagar has come to be seen as one of Maharashtra’s emerging centers for medical tourism. Its healthcare network now includes a range of advanced medical facilities and specialized services that serve residents as well as patients from neighboring districts and states.

Healthcare Infrastructure

Sambhaji Nagar’s healthcare infrastructure aligns with the broader Indian model, which is characterized by a multi-tiered system comprising both public and private sectors. Currently, the public healthcare system is tiered into primary, secondary, and tertiary levels. Primary care is provided through Sub Centres and Primary Health Centres (PHCs), while secondary care is managed by Community Health Centres (CHCs) and sub-district hospitals. Tertiary care, the highest level, includes medical colleges and district hospitals. This system has been shaped and refined over time, influenced by national healthcare reforms.

Clinics in Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar district. Source: OpenStreetMaps (Sept. 2025)
Hospitals in Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar district. Source: OpenStreetMaps (Sept. 2025)

Organized healthcare in the district began to take clearer shape in the early 20th century. One of the first formal facilities was the Aurangabad Cantonment General Hospital, set up in 1916 as a 20-bed unit serving local residents. In 1956, the Government Medical College was opened, adding capacity for medical education and wider health services in the district. For most of the decades, the Government Medical College and its affiliated hospital served as the district’s main public healthcare facility.

Government Medical College, Sambhaji Nagar[1]
Government Medical College, Sambhaji Nagar

During the 1980s, industrial development and population growth created more demand for healthcare, and private facilities gradually became part of the district’s system. Notably, many local figures, such as Rajnarayan Bagla, Nandkishor Kagliwal, and Madhur Bajaj, supported these developments through medical trusts. In 1988, Madhur and Kumud Bajaj set up the Marathwada Medical & Research Institute, which opened Kamalnayan Bajaj Hospital in 1990. The hospital continues to operate as part of the district’s network of private healthcare providers.

Kamalnayan Bajaj Hospital, Sambhaji Nagar[2]
Kamalnayan Bajaj Hospital, Sambhaji Nagar

Remarkably, in 2021, Sambhaji Nagar ranked first in the health category of India’s Ease of Living Index among 111 cities, as reported by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. Today, the district’s public hospitals, medical colleges, and private institutions together provide healthcare services to residents and people from nearby areas.

NGOs and Initiatives

The determinants of health and health outcomes, as the World Health Organization (WHO) elaborates, are shaped by more than just medical factors and healthcare services. The organization uses the term “social determinants of health (SDH)” to refer to the “non-medical factors that influence health outcomes.” These non-medical factors can be sanitation, nutrition, community well-being, or, as the WHO outlines, “income and social protection,” “food security,” access to quality healthcare, and more.

While there have been ongoing efforts to strengthen the Sambhaji Nagar district’s healthcare infrastructure, certain areas still face challenges, particularly in addressing these broader health determinants. In response, non-governmental organizations have emerged as vital partners, working alongside public health systems to develop innovative, grassroots-level approaches that bridge these gaps.

Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Vaidyakiya Pratishthan

Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Vaidyakiya Pratishthan is one such trust that has worked to improve healthcare access for slum populations in the district. Founded by a group of doctors, the trust opened Dr. Hedgewar Rugnalaya Hospital in 1989 to provide affordable medical care. Since then, it has expanded its work through three community health centers and related initiatives, including health workshops, immunization drives, AIDS awareness, family planning services, and educational programs for women and children.

Dr Hedgewar Hospital, Sambhaji Nagar[3]
Dr Hedgewar Hospital, Sambhaji Nagar

The trust operates a Poor Patients Fund to cover treatment costs for patients unable to pay, along with a Blood Bank, Slum Health Project, Rural Health Project, and Women & Child Development Programmes. It also provides vocational training in nursing and other health services through its health centers and mobile clinics.

Momentum Routine Immunization Transformation and Equity

Momentum Routine Immunization Transformation and Equity (MRITE) is a vaccination outreach initiative implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic by the Marathwada Gramin Vikas Sanstha. The program focused on increasing vaccination rates among economically weaker communities in Sambhaji Nagar and neighboring districts.

Community outreach event organised under the MRITE vaccination initiative in Sambhaji Nagar[4]
Community outreach event organised under the MRITE vaccination initiative in Sambhaji Nagar.

Many residents in these areas faced barriers such as limited access to health services, lack of information, and vaccine hesitancy. MRITE addressed these gaps through community outreach and advocacy, organizing 99 special-day events where health messages were shared as part of local gatherings to encourage participation in vaccination drives.

Graphs

Healthcare Facilities and Services

Morbidity and Mortality

Maternal and Newborn Health

Family Planning

Immunization

Nutrition

Sources

Aurangabad Cantonment Board. "Public Health Care." Aurangabad Cantonment Board. https://aurangabad.cantt.gov.in/public-healt…

Bajaj Hospital. "History of Bajaj Hospital." Bajaj Hospital, Aurangabad. https://bajajhospital.com/history/

Dr. Hedgewar Hospital. "Overview of Dr. Hedgewar Hospital." Hedgewar Hospital.https://www.hedgewar.org/overview.htm

Gazetteers Department, Government of Maharashtra. 1977. Maharashtra State Gazetteers: Aurangabad District (Rev. ed.). Bombay: The Executive Director and Secretary, Gazetteers Department.

Government Medical College, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. "Overview." GMC Sambhajinagar. http://www.gmcaurangabad.com/Overview.aspx

M Choksi, B. Patil et al. 2016. Health systems in India.Vol 36 (Suppl 3). Journal of Perinatology.

Mahatma Gandhi Vidyamandir, Sambhajinagar. "Momentum–Routine Immunization Transformation & Equity (M-RITE) & COVID." MGV Sambhajinagar.https://www.mgvsabad.org/immunization-transf…

N. Ragde. 2022. Medical tourism: An introspection of future behavior and satisfaction level of medical tourists at Aurangabad. Euro-Asia Tourism Studies Journal (EATSJ), 3, November.https://eatsa-researches.org/journal/medical…

National Health Mission (NHM). "About Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA)." National Health Mission, India.https://nhm.gov.in/index1.php?lang=1&level=1…

Social determinants of health. WHO.https://www.who.int/health-topics/social-det…

Last updated on 26 July 2025. Help us improve the information on this page by clicking on suggest edits or writing to us.