NEW DELHI — India remains firmly on track in its effort to eliminate tuberculosis, officials from the Central TB Division said Friday, pushing back against reports suggesting a rise in TB cases nationwide.
Citing the World Health Organization’s Global TB Report 2025, officials noted that India has achieved significant progress over the past decade. TB incidence has fallen 21 percent, from 237 cases per lakh population in 2015 to 187 per lakh in 2024. During the same period, TB mortality dropped 25 percent, from 28 deaths per lakh to 21.
Treatment coverage has also risen sharply, improving from 53 percent in 2015 to 92 percent in 2024 — a shift officials say has helped curb transmission and ensure early, effective treatment.
“These gains reflect strengthened surveillance, early detection, and expanded treatment coverage,” officials said. They added that the government’s flagship TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyan, launched in December 2024, is expected to further accelerate progress toward eliminating the disease.
The WHO had previously estimated that India had nearly 15 lakh “missing” TB cases in 2015 — undetected infections that posed a major barrier to controlling transmission. By 2024, that figure fell by 93 percent to under one lakh, marking what officials described as a breakthrough in identifying unreported and asymptomatic cases.
The Central TB Division noted that rising notifications are frequently misinterpreted as a surge in TB cases. “In reality, higher notifications reflect improved detection and faster treatment initiation, preventing further spread of infection,” they said. Identifying infections earlier, before symptoms worsen, has contributed to reduced transmission and better treatment outcomes, ultimately lowering deaths.
The TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyan, they said, represents a strategic shift toward proactive, technology-driven surveillance. The campaign incorporates AI-enabled handheld X-rays, digital screening tools, upfront molecular diagnostics (NAAT), and targeted outreach in high-risk areas.
Under the initiative, 24.89 lakh cases were notified, including 8.7 lakh asymptomatic infections that likely would have gone undetected under earlier, conventional methods. (Source: IANS)
