Daijiworld Media Network – New Delhi

New Delhi, Dec 20: India has achieved a 21% decline in tuberculosis (TB) incidence over the past decade, the Union Health Ministry informed the Rajya Sabha today. As per the World Health Organization’s Global TB Report 2025, TB cases in India have fallen from 237 per lakh population in 2015 to 187 per lakh in 2024, while treatment coverage improved from 53% to 92%, the Minister said in a written reply.

The notification of TB cases also rose from 16.07 lakh in 2015 to 26.18 lakh in 2024, reflecting successful efforts to identify previously undetected cases and ensure prompt treatment.

Under the TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyan, key strategies focus on early detection and management, including:

• Identification and screening of vulnerable populations, including asymptomatic individuals.

• Use of Chest X-rays and upfront Nucleic Acid Amplification Tests (NAAT) for all presumptive TB cases.

• Timely treatment initiation, differentiated care for high-risk cases, nutrition support, and preventive treatment for eligible populations.

Other measures highlighted include targeted interventions in high TB burden areas, free drugs and diagnostics, active case-finding campaigns, decentralised TB services at the level of Ayushman Arogya Mandirs, and private sector engagement with incentives for notification and treatment reporting.

The Ministry has also scaled up molecular diagnostic laboratories, intensified awareness campaigns to reduce stigma, and improved community health-seeking behaviour. Converged efforts across line ministries and tracking via the Ni-kshay portal are supporting the national goal of TB elimination.

Officials emphasised that the program’s success relies on both robust detection and effective treatment completion, with preventive measures aimed at halting transmission among contacts and vulnerable populations.