Massive fake Ayushman card nexus busted in UP and Punjab; over 300 IDs seized

Authorities uncovered a major scam involving the creation of fake Ayushman health insurance cards in Uttar Pradesh and Punjab. Investigations revealed that fraudsters used fake identities of officials to issue 300 counterfeit cards, prompting a police probe and the suspension of the affected IDs.

As many as 300 counterfeit Ayushman cards were issued using fake identities of officials from the State Agencies for Comprehensive Health and Integrated Services (SACHIS), the body responsible for issuing the health insurance IDs. (Representative image)

A large-scale scam involving the creation of fake Ayushman health insurance cards has been discovered in Uttar Pradesh and Punjab. The fraudulent activity was detected after 300 counterfeit cards were issued using fake identities of officials from the State Agencies for Comprehensive Health and Integrated Services (SACHIS), the body responsible for issuing Ayushman cards.

The Ayushman cards are part of the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY), a flagship government scheme designed to provide health coverage to economically disadvantaged families.

The scam surfaced during the recent Diwali holidays when perpetrators exploited the system by generating fake IDs of SACHIS officials to bypass verification protocols.

Fraudsters targeted residents in Bareilly and Shahjahanpur in Uttar Pradesh, as well as Jalandhar in Punjab. By using unauthorised access to the official portals, they managed to produce and distribute fake Ayushman cards to unsuspecting recipients in these cities.

Initial inquiries have confirmed the creation of 300 such cards, raising questions about the oversight mechanisms in place.

The technique used by the scammers involved manipulating the mobile numbers tied to SACHIS officials’ accounts. They matched these numbers with those on Aadhaar cards and altered them on the official portal, preventing the required OTP for approval from reaching legitimate officials. This allowed them to fabricate fake Aadhaar cards as part of the process.