{"id":73652,"date":"2025-11-16T11:51:08","date_gmt":"2025-11-16T06:21:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/?p=73652"},"modified":"2025-11-16T12:54:09","modified_gmt":"2025-11-16T07:24:09","slug":"india-tuberculosis-elimination","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/india-tuberculosis-elimination\/","title":{"rendered":"India\u2019s Progress in Tackling Tuberculosis &#8211; Explained"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Tuberculosis Latest News<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The WHO Global TB Report 2025 highlighted that India\u2019s TB incidence has declined by 21% since 2015.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Background<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The <\/span><b>World Health Organisation Global Tuberculosis Report 2025<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> has reaffirmed that <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/tuberculosis-tb\/\" target=\"_blank\"><b>tuberculosis<\/b><\/a><b> (TB)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> continues to be among the world\u2019s <\/span><b>deadliest infectious diseases<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, claiming over <\/span><b>1.2 million lives<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and affecting <\/span><b>10.7 million people globally in 2024<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While India remains the <\/span><b>largest contributor<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to the global TB burden, the country has made <\/span><b>significant strides in reducing incidence<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, with a <\/span><b>21% decline between 2015 and 2024<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, nearly double the global average rate of decline.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, despite these achievements, India has <\/span><b>missed its self-imposed target<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of eliminating TB by <\/span><b>2025<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, underscoring persistent challenges such as <\/span><b>drug-resistant strains, healthcare gaps, and social stigma<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Global and National Burden of Tuberculosis<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">According to the WHO report, <\/span><b>87% of the world\u2019s TB cases<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> are concentrated in just 30 countries, with <\/span><b>India (25%)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> leading the list, followed by <\/span><b>Indonesia (10%)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><b>the Philippines (6.8%)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><b>China (6.5%)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and <\/span><b>Pakistan (6.3%)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India\u2019s estimated TB incidence rate fell from <\/span><b>237 per lakh population in 2015<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to <\/span><b>187 per lakh in 2024<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, marking a commendable improvement in detection and treatment coverage.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The <\/span><b>Union Health Ministry<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> reported that India\u2019s <\/span><b>treatment coverage now stands at 92%<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, outpacing most high-burden countries.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">States such as <\/span><b>Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, and Madhya Pradesh<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> account for the highest number of TB cases, while <\/span><b>Delhi<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> records the highest infection prevalence rate.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Government Initiatives and Policy Framework<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India\u2019s TB elimination efforts are anchored in the <\/span><b>National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme (NTEP)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, launched in 2020 after rebranding the earlier <\/span><b>Revised National TB Control Programme (RNTCP)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The NTEP set an ambitious goal to eliminate TB by <\/span><b>2025<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, five years ahead of the <\/span><b>global target of 2030<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Key interventions under the NTEP include:<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Expanded Diagnostic Infrastructure<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; India has established 9,391 rapid molecular testing laboratories and 107 culture and drug susceptibility testing labs, forming the largest TB diagnostic network in the world.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Use of Technology and AI<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; Over 500 AI-enabled portable X-ray units have been deployed nationwide to enhance community screening, with 1,500 more units planned for delivery.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Decentralised TB Care through Ayushman Arogya Mandirs<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; Around 1.78 lakh primary health centres provide TB services closer to communities, improving accessibility.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Nutritional Support under Ni-kshay Poshan Yojana<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; Monthly Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) to TB patients has been doubled from Rs. 500 to Rs. 1,000, supporting better treatment adherence and recovery.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Community and ASHA Worker Engagement<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs) have been trained to identify early TB symptoms and ensure treatment compliance.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Persistent Challenges in TB Elimination<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India has one of the highest burdens of <\/span><b>multi-drug-resistant TB (MDR-TB)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in the world, making treatment longer, more expensive, and less effective.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Drug resistance continues to threaten the country\u2019s progress in curbing overall TB cases.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Healthcare Infrastructure and Workforce Gaps<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Rural and remote areas continue to face <\/span><b>shortages of trained personnel<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, diagnostic delays, and <\/span><b>weak referral systems<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, affecting timely detection and treatment.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Supply Chain and Drug Stockouts<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Periodic disruptions in the <\/span><b>anti-TB drug supply chain<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> have led to stockouts in several states, forcing patients to skip doses, a critical risk factor for developing drug resistance.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Although authorities have denied widespread shortages, regional inconsistencies persist.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Funding and Research Deficits<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Globally, only <\/span><b>$5.9 billion<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> was available for TB control in 2024, just a quarter of the <\/span><b>$22 billion annual target<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> set for 2027.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Research funding remains limited at <\/span><b>$1.2 billion (24% of the target)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. These shortfalls directly impact the rollout of new diagnostics, drugs, and vaccines.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Social Stigma and Awareness Gaps<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Deep-rooted <\/span><b>stigma and discrimination<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> discourage patients from seeking diagnosis and adhering to treatment, particularly among women and marginalised groups.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Global Efforts and India\u2019s Role<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The WHO highlighted that globally, TB incidence fell by <\/span><b>2% between 2023 and 2024<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and deaths decreased by <\/span><b>3%<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Since 2000, timely diagnosis and treatment have <\/span><b>saved 83 million lives<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India\u2019s accelerated decline in TB incidence, nearly <\/span><b>twice the global average<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, demonstrates strong national ownership and effective public health strategies.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The government\u2019s expansion of the <\/span><b>\u201cNi-kshay Mitra\u201d initiative<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, under which individuals and organisations adopt TB patients to provide nutritional and social support, has also gained momentum.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, to meet the global <\/span><b>End TB Strategy<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, India must sustain annual declines of <\/span><b>10-12%<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, supported by greater investment, innovation, and intersectoral collaboration.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Way Forward<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Experts emphasise the need for a <\/span><b>multi-pronged strategy<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> focusing on:<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Universal access to diagnosis and treatment<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, especially for marginalised communities.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Integration of TB care with primary health services<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to ensure continuity.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Scaling up digital surveillance<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and AI-based diagnostic tools.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Increased domestic and global funding<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for TB research and vaccine development.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Public awareness and destigmatisation campaigns<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to encourage early treatment.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Source :<\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/sci-tech\/health\/where-does-india-stand-in-tackling-tb-explained\/article70284990.ece#:~:text=In%202024%2C%2087%25%20of%20the,3.6%25)%2C%20the%20report%20noted.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">TH<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>India has reduced tuberculosis incidence by 21% since 2015, but challenges hinder its 2025 elimination goal.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":73689,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[60,3728,22,59],"class_list":{"0":"post-73652","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-upsc-mains-current-affairs","8":"tag-mains-articles","9":"tag-tuberculosis","10":"tag-upsc-current-affairs","11":"tag-upsc-mains-current-affairs","12":"no-featured-image-padding"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73652","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/21"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=73652"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73652\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/73689"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=73652"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=73652"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=73652"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}