New Delhi, Dec. 10 -- India's healthcare challenge is not a problem of capacity. It is one of access and distribution. Even as our national average doctor-to-population ratio appears to be 'adequate', there is a severe urban-rural divide when it comes to access to quality healthcare. According to a Rural Health Statistics report, there is a 80 per cent shortfall of specialist doctors like surgeons, pediatricians, physicians and gynaecologists in rural Community Health Centres (CHCs). The report for 2022-23 shows that only 4,413 specialist doctors, against the 21,964 needed in rural CHCs for March 2023, were available. As about 70 per cent of India's population resides in rural areas, the problem gains even more seriousness as this systemi...