General Knowledge and Awareness
What this domain tests
General Knowledge and Awareness in AIIMS Paramedical checks Indian polity, static GK, and current health-related affairs. Expect questions on constitutional provisions affecting health, national health programmes, international health bodies, and recent schemes. Study with a health-sector lens rather than random trivia.
Core rules and facts
- Article 21 (right to life and personal liberty) has been read by the Supreme Court to include the right to health; Article 47 is a Directive Principle directing the State to improve public health and prohibit intoxicants.
- Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY gives eligible families ₹5 lakh per year for secondary and tertiary hospitalisation; it is not a primary-care scheme.
- The National Health Mission (2013) subsumes the National Rural Health Mission and National Urban Health Mission.
- WHO was founded on 7 April 1948; headquarters: Geneva; World Health Day: 7 April.
- Mission Indradhanush targets full immunisation of children and pregnant women; Nikshay Poshan Yojana gives nutritional support to TB patients.
Worked example
Question: Which constitutional article is most directly interpreted to include the right to health? Reasoning: Article 21 protects life and personal liberty; Indian courts have expanded 'life' to include health, medical care, and a clean environment. Article 47 is a policy directive, not an enforceable fundamental right. Answer: Article 21.
Traps
Do not swap Article 21 with Article 47. Do not confuse PM-JAY's ₹5 lakh cover with the National Health Mission's broad primary-care focus. Current-affairs questions usually avoid exact dates beyond 12–18 months, but scheme names and launch years are fair. WHO is a UN specialised agency, not an NGO.