Information, Education And Communication (IEC) Scheme, 2025

Policy Update
Bavleen

Background

Information, Education, and Communication (IEC) is an essential component of India’s public health and social development interventions. The IEC Scheme was created to bridge the information gap, promote healthy behaviors, and create awareness about government programmes through well-designed communication strategies. Managed by ministries like Health & Family Welfare and AYUSH, IEC initiatives aim to create awareness at scale through multiple media – print, electronic, and interpersonal – and target diverse population groups.

The scheme was born out of the need to address the behavioral barriers to health-seeking behavior and promote preventive healthcare. Its objective is to educate communities, bring about behavioral change, and ultimately improve public health outcomes. IEC under National Health Mission (NHM) and National AYUSH Mission (NAM) have evolved to include innovative campaigns, grassroots mobilization, and the use of digital technologies to reach wider. The Ministry of AYUSH’s latest scheme guidelines (2021-26) have formalized financial assistance for organizing health promotion activities like Arogya Fairs, Yoga Utsavs, and media campaigns at the state and district levels.

Beneficiaries are citizens across all demographics, with special focus on rural communities, marginalized groups, and populations with low health awareness. The scheme is also important in bridging the gap between service delivery and community participation, so that people are aware of the services available and how to access them.

Functioning

The IEC Scheme works on a decentralized model. Funds are given to States/UTs, who are responsible for planning and implementing IEC activities as per local needs. The Ministry of AYUSH provides financial support for exhibitions, campaigns, and training workshops, and state health departments and district-level health societies execute.

Activities include:

Mass Media: TV, radio, newspapers, digital platforms.
Mid-media: Street plays, folk performances, wall paintings.
Interpersonal: ASHA workers and community health volunteers.
Capacity Building: Training programs for health staff to deliver IEC messages effectively.

Monitoring mechanisms include periodic review, utilization certificates from implementing agencies, and performance review through Program Implementation Plans (PIPs). However, reports from the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) have pointed out issues like underutilization of funds, lack of coordinated approach, and delay in campaign roll-out (CAG, 2009).

Performance

Over the last 3 years, the IEC scheme has had consistent budgetary support. As per the Ministry of AYUSH (2024), ₹50 crore was allocated under the IEC component for 2023-24 with a utilization of 85%. Parliamentary replies (Lok Sabha, 2024a; 2024b) show that more than 300 health fairs and yoga festivals were organized across the country, with over 10 million people participating.

At the state level, Maharashtra and Kerala have developed IEC strategies with media plans and community-based outreach (National Health Mission, Maharashtra, 2025). They have higher participation rates in wellness camps and AYUSH interventions, which shows a correlation between awareness campaigns and service uptake.

But gaps still exist. Many states are struggling to develop content in local languages, last-mile delivery of messages, and measuring behavioral outcomes. Independent studies (Parisi et al., 2023) show that awareness of schemes like Ayushman Bharat is still uneven, especially among rural and marginalized groups, so IEC needs to be strengthened.

Impact

IEC has increased public participation in health programs. For example, International Day of Yoga campaigns have made yoga mainstream with a measurable increase in attendance at yoga camps (PIB, 2024). NAM IEC has also promoted traditional medicine systems and seen an increase in footfall in AYUSH hospitals and dispensaries.

But impact measurement is mostly input and output-based (number of events, number of participants) and not outcome-based (behavioral change, health outcomes). CAG audits (2009) still show the absence of clear Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to measure behavior change. This gap makes it difficult to see if increased awareness translates into improved health-seeking behavior or reduced disease burden.

Emerging Issues

Underutilization of Funds: States return unspent allocations due to poor planning.
Content and Language Barriers: No regionally customized, culturally sensitive messaging.
Monitoring and Evaluation Gaps: Real-time data dashboards are needed to track behavior outcomes.
Digital Divide: Social media campaigns may exclude populations without the internet.
Fragmentation: Overlaps between IEC campaigns of different ministries lead to duplication of efforts.

Recommendations:

Standardize KPIs for behavior change.
Strengthen local capacity to plan and execute campaigns in local languages.
Integrate IEC with digital health platforms (ABHA ID, NDHM).
Public-private partnerships for content development.
Use community feedback to refine messaging.

Way Forward

IEC remains key to shaping health behaviors and awareness. Going forward, an evidence-based, outcome-oriented approach is required. Integration with digital health initiatives, adoption of innovative tools like gamified health apps, and targeted campaigns for vulnerable groups can amplify impact.

A stronger focus on behavioral change communication (BCC) rather than just information dissemination will ensure IEC empowers citizens to make informed health decisions. With the right investments and monitoring mechanisms, IEC can play a transformative role in building a healthier, more health-aware India by 2030.

References

Comptroller and Auditor General of India. (2009). Performance Audit of the National Rural Health Mission: Chapter 10 — Information, Education and Communication. Government of India. https://cag.gov.in/uploads/download_audit_report/2009/Union_Performance_Civil_National_Rural_Health_Mission_8_2009_chapter_10.pdf

Ministry of AYUSH. (2021). Central Sector Scheme for Promotion of Information, Education and Communication (IEC) in AYUSH (2021–26): Scheme Guidelines [PDF]. Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India. https://ngo.ayush.gov.in/Default/assets/front/documents/IEC-scheme-of-2021-26-with-Annexures-converted_0.pdf

Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. (2025). Annual Report 2024–25. Government of India. https://mohfw.gov.in/sites/default/files/Final%20Printed%20English%20AR%202024-25.pdf

National Health Mission, Government of Maharashtra. (2025). Information-Education-Communication (IEC) — Scheme page. Government of Maharashtra. https://nhm.maharashtra.gov.in/en/scheme/information-education-communication/

Parliament of India, Lok Sabha. (2024, February 9). Reply to Unstarred Question AU1160 regarding IEC scheme (Ministry of AYUSH). https://sansad.in/getFile/loksabhaquestions/annex/1715/AU1160.pdf

Parliament of India, Lok Sabha. (2024, February 9). Reply to Unstarred Question AU1263 regarding IEC scheme (Ministry of AYUSH). https://sansad.in/getFile/loksabhaquestions/annex/1715/AU1263.pdf

State Health Agency, Government of Kerala. (2019). Information, Education and Communication (IEC) — Guidebook. https://sha.kerala.gov.in/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IEC-Guidebook-110119.pdf

About the Contributor

Bavleen, Research Intern at IMPRI, pursuing Economics Honours from Sri Guru Gobind Singh College of Commerce, Delhi University.

Acknowledgment: The author sincerely thanks Ms. Aasthaba Jadeja and the IMPRI team for their valuable support.

Disclaimer: All views expressed in the article belong to the author and not necessarily to the organisation.