Fake Ayushman Card Racket Busted In UP And Punjab; 300 IDs Recovered

Authorities in Uttar Pradesh and Punjab have uncovered a large-scale scam involving the creation of fake Ayushman Bharat health insurance cards.

Investigations revealed that fraudsters used forged identities of officials from the State Agencies for Comprehensive Health and Integrated Services (SACHIS) to issue over 300 counterfeit cards, reported India Today.

The Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) provides free health coverage to economically weaker families.

The fraud came to light during the Diwali holidays when the culprits exploited verification loopholes by generating fake IDs of SACHIS officials to access the official portal.

The scammers targeted residents in Bareilly and Shahjahanpur in Uttar Pradesh and Jalandhar in Punjab.

By manipulating mobile numbers linked to SACHIS officials’ accounts, the fraudsters matched them with Aadhaar-linked numbers and altered the details on the official system.

This change prevented the legitimate officials from receiving OTPs for approval, enabling the creation of fake Aadhaar and Ayushman cards.

Once the breach was detected, authorities swiftly deactivated the forged IDs and cancelled over 300 fraudulent Aadhaar cards. State nodal officer Sachin Vaishya lodged an FIR at Lucknow’s Hazratganj police station.

Officials have launched a detailed probe to determine whether SACHIS employees were involved in the scam.

The government has also ordered an audit of all Ayushman card issuances from the past six months to identify further irregularities and strengthen verification mechanisms within the welfare scheme.

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