As a part of its bid to eliminate Tuberculosis (TB) by 2025 Union Health Minister, Dr Harsh Vardhan released the annual tuberculosis report listing the achievements of the central government’s efforts to defeat the disease. The report was released in the presence of MoS Ashwini Choubey via a virtual event. On the basis of the score in State TB Index, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh were the top three best-performing states for tuberculosis control under the category of states with 50 lakh population. Launching the annual report, Dr Vardhan commended the collective efforts of all involved in the task and said the government was committed to eliminating tuberculosis from the country by 2025, five years ahead of the global target.

Dr Harsh Vardhan said that few states have committed to eradicating it even before 2025. Himachal Pradesh aims to get rid of it by 2021 and Sikkim and Lakshadweep by 2022. Around 24.04 lakh TB patients were notified in 2019, registering a 14% increase over the previous year. The report stated that out of the total TB patients, up to 2.9 lakh is missing or failed to be picked up. “Out of the 10 lakh missing cases across the country, we were able to find 7.81 lakh cases,” he added.

Dr Vardhan added that earlier the fight against TB was a herculean task but now it is not impossible. We can win the fight against TB even before 2025. The TB report stated that the private sector detected as many as seven lakh cases last year as against 3,000 in 2012. The success rate has also increased from 79% to 81%t. If the country can stand against the coronavirus pandemic in five months, it can surely fight TB.