After India got independence, the Governments of the day left no stone unturned to attend to the problems that were plaguing the nation. The Indian state being a welfare state was obsessed with providing a healthy and happy life-style to the people of the nation. One of the primordial concerns of the government happens to be the public health. Providing good health to the masses happens to be a formidable challenge for the government partly because of the ignorance of the people and partly because of the eating, hygiene and other health practices of the people. The government wanted to inculcate good practices among the people with regard to public health and has witnessed many hurdles in its attempt to affect the lives of the people of this great nation. Some of the health issues that have been looming large in the face of the nation are tuberculosis, malaria, leprosy, high child and maternal mortality and to this nefarious list has joined the HIV/AIDS menace and the government has been addressing these issues with lot of commitment in a concerted manner. The scientific advances and the social development have synergized to provide good health care to the people and it has resulted in the decreased mortality as well as birth rates. The present research study is a review of the existing governmental machinery which is catering to the need of the public health of the masses, its limitations its success along with its future trajectory.