Air Force to Deploy Aarogya Maitri Cube Portable Hospital in Ayodhya for Ram Mandir Opening

In preparation for the upcoming inauguration of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has asked the National Security Agency (NSA) to deploy India’s ground-breaking portable hospital, the ‘Aarogya Maitri Cube’, to handle health emergencies.

Based on the concept of the Rubik’s Cube, Aarogya Maitri Cube is a National Security Coordination Secretariat (NSCS)-led inter-ministerial project under the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Defence, Indian Air Force and public sector drugmaker HLL.

Equipped with an operation theatre, mini-ICU, ventilator, blood test equipment, X-ray machine, medicines, cooking station, food and more, Aarogya Maitri Cube is the world’s first disaster hospital that can be airlifted and packed in 72 cubes.

India has built the product under project BHISHM — Bharat Health Initiative for Sahyog Hita and Maitri — which includes three frames, each accommodating 12 mini-cubes.

Based on the request from the health ministry, two Aarogya Maitri Cubes will be moved to Ayodhya by airplanes led by the Indian Air Force, three senior officials privy to the development confirmed to News18. All officials confirmed that the cubes will be deployed from January 20-24.

Special orders to fill cubes with extra medicines

On January 22, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to oversee the consecration ceremony of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya. The final stages of preparation are underway for the event, with invitations extended to several VVIP guests from both India and abroad.

“Special orders have been issued to vendors to fill up the cubes with extra, multi-variety medicines,” a top government officer, one of the three quoted above, told News18, requesting anonymity.

The design of one cube allows joining two cages – master cube one and master cube two, including 72 cubes in total – with damage control capabilities for 200 survivors.

“Moving two Aarogya Maitri Cubes will help us deal with an emergency of over 400 people. HLL Life Care — which is the government’s nodal agency for sourcing the Aarogya Maitri Cube — has been asked to supply these cubes to the Indian Air Force at the request of the health ministry,” the official added.