The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) and the Department of Space (DOS) have jointly set up Satellite-based Telemedicine nodes at important pilgrimage centers like Chardhams, which are present in unreachable geographical locations. The location attracts many devotees such as the Ayappa temple in Kerala, Dwarkadhish Temple in Gujarat, Kashi Vishwanath Temple, and Vidhyanchal Devi temple in Uttar Pradesh are now equipped with telehealth services and screening of non-communicable diseases (NCD).
In fact, at the Amarnath shrine in Jammu & Kashmir, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) along with Jammu and Kashmir’s Directorate of Health Services-Kashmir (DHS-K) has set up a telemedicine center at a high altitude of 12,7000 ft for pilgrims traveling to Amarnath. This center enables real-time treatment for high-altitude ailments that frequently afflict visitors. The telemedicine facility can also connect the doctors to tertiary care institutions in the country so that expert opinion can be sought in emergencies.