Susrusha Scheme (Financial Assistance for Kidney Transplantation)

What is the Susrusha Scheme?

Susrusha is a scheme of the Health & Family Welfare Department, Government of Assam, implemented under the National Health Mission, that provided Rs 1 lakh as one-time financial assistance to people who underwent kidney transplantation. Susrusha was launched on 23 August 2010.

Susrusha is no longer disbursing benefits. According to the National Health Mission Assam portal, the scheme ceased providing benefits after the financial year 2016-17. Over its seven operational financial years, Susrusha benefited 386 individuals.

This guide records what Susrusha offered, and then sets out the route that is actually live today for a kidney patient in Assam; Assam Arogya Nidhi.

The scheme name is also written Sushrusha or Shushrusha in some listings. All spellings refer to the same kidney transplantation assistance scheme.

Who was eligible for the Susrusha Scheme?

Susrusha applied two conditions, and both had to be satisfied.

A person could claim if:

• They were a resident of Assam.
• Their family annual income did not exceed Rs 3 lakh.
• The kidney transplantation was performed on or after 1 April 2010.

A person was not eligible if:

• The transplant took place before 1 April 2010. The scheme did not apply retrospectively beyond that cut-off.
• Family annual income was above Rs 3 lakh.
• They were not a resident of Assam.

Nobody is eligible today, because the scheme stopped disbursing after 2016-17.

How much did Susrusha pay?

Susrusha paid a flat Rs 1,00,000 per beneficiary. It was a one-time post-transplant assistance, not a recurring payment and not a treatment package. The money was intended to offset part of the cost of a transplant and the immediate post-operative period, in which immunosuppressant medication is the main recurring expense.

Susrusha was administered under the National Health Mission, Assam, with the Director of Medical Education, Assam as the nodal officer.

What documents were required for Susrusha?

The same document set carries over almost unchanged to Assam Arogya Nidhi, so a family that assembled papers for a Susrusha claim can reuse them.

How to apply for kidney transplant assistance in Assam now

Because Susrusha is closed, the working route is Assam Arogya Nidhi, which provides financial assistance of up to Rs 3 lakh for hospitalisation. Assam Arogya Nidhi has been running since 2010 and, as of 31 March 2025, had assisted 11,211 people with roughly Rs 101.38 crore disbursed.

1. Download the application form from the National Health Mission Assam portal at nhm.assam.gov.in.
2. Assemble the documents, income certificate showing family annual income below Rs 5 lakh, identity proof, medical bills, discharge summary, and bank account details for direct transfer.
3. Confirm the hospital qualifies. Treatment must be at a government hospital, a medical college, or a private hospital empanelled and registered under the Clinical Establishment Act, 2010.
4. Submit the completed application to the Office of the Mission Director, National Health Mission, Assam, Saikia Commercial Complex, Christian Basti, Guwahati 781005.
5. Wait for the Expert Committee review. A committee of specialist doctors from Gauhati Medical College examines each application, verifies the medical claim and determines eligibility.
6. Receive the assistance by bank transfer once approved.

Who cannot apply under Assam Arogya Nidhi?

• Government employees and pensioners are excluded.
• Families with annual income of Rs 5 lakh or more are not eligible.
• People who are not permanent residents of Assam cannot apply.

There is no age restriction under Assam Arogya Nidhi, which matters for paediatric and elderly transplant patients. The scheme is also positioned for patients who have exhausted their PMJAY or MMJAY limits, so a family that has used up its Ayushman Bharat cover for the year can still come to Arogya Nidhi.

Why a claim gets rejected or delayed

• Income certificate above the ceiling; Rs 3 lakh under the old Susrusha rules, Rs 5 lakh under Assam Arogya Nidhi.
• Treatment at a non-qualifying hospital. A private hospital that is not empanelled or not registered under the Clinical Establishment Act, 2010.
• Incomplete medical documentation, a missing discharge summary or bills that do not match the claimed procedure.
• Applicant is a government employee or pensioner, which is a straight exclusion under Arogya Nidhi.
• Bank details mismatched with the patient's identity documents, which stops the direct transfer even after approval.

Key dates

• 23 August 2010, Susrusha launched.
• 1 April 2010 — the earliest transplant date that qualified for Susrusha.
• 2016-17. The last financial year in which Susrusha disbursed benefits.
• 31 March 2025: Assam Arogya Nidhi cumulative figures stood at 11,211 beneficiaries and about Rs 101.38 crore.

Help and grievance redressal

• National Health Mission, Assam: nhm.assam.gov.in carries the scheme pages, application forms and progress figures.
• Office of the Mission Director, NHM Assam, Saikia Commercial Complex, Christian Basti, Guwahati 781005, the submission and follow-up address for Assam Arogya Nidhi.
• Director of Medical Education, Assam, the nodal authority named for Susrusha.

No dedicated Susrusha helpline number is published on the NHM Assam portal, so none is listed here. Approach the Mission Director's office or your district health authority instead.

Editorial note on scope. Susrusha is a closed scheme with a small published record, a single benefit amount, two eligibility conditions, a launch date and a beneficiary count. This guide states all of it rather than padding the scheme into an appearance of activity it no longer has, and points readers to the live Assam Arogya Nidhi route instead.