UPSC Articles
India’s TB Elimination Programme
Part of: Prelims and Mains GS-II: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health
In News: WHO South-East Asia Region (SEAR) High-Level Meeting held for renewed TB response co-chaired by India.
India’s contribution towards eliminating TB
- Eliminating TB by 2025: India is committed to eliminating tuberculosis by 2025, five years ahead of the global target of 2030.
- National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme: To align with the ambitious goal, the programme has been renamed from the Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme (RNTCP) to National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme (NTEP
- Addressing all co-morbidities and goes beyond medical interventions to tackle the social determinants of TB while minimizing access barriers to diagnosis and treatment.
- Through the Nikshay Poshan Yojana, nutritional support is extended to all TB patients for the entire duration of their treatment.
- Rigorously working towards Airborne Infection Control in hospital wards and outpatient waiting areas.
- Has the provision of chemoprophylaxis against TB disease in pediatric contacts of TB patients and PLHIV patients.
- The process is ongoing for expanding TB preventive treatment for the adult contacts too.
- ‘TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan’ has been launched as a people’s movement for TB elimination in India.
- India remains committed to supporting countries in its neighbourhood with possible technical support and assistance.
Indi appreciated the South-East Asia Region (SEAR) for demonstrating the highest-level political commitment towards ending tuberculosis and increasing investments towards ending TB.
Tuberculosis (TB)
Tuberculosis (TB) is a disease caused by bacteria called Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
- Transmission: TB is spread from person to person through the air. When people with TB cough, sneeze or spit, they propel the TB germs into the air.
- Symptoms: Cough with sputum and blood at times, chest pains, weakness, weight loss, fever and night sweats.
- TB is a treatable and curable disease.
- Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) is a form of TB caused by bacteria that do not respond to isoniazid and rifampicin, the 2 most powerful, first-line anti-TB drugs. It is treatable and curable by using second-line drugs.
- Extensively drug-resistant TB (XDR-TB) is a more serious form of MDR-TB caused by bacteria that do not respond to the most effective second-line anti-TB drugs, often leaving patients without any further treatment options.
Reports say
- According to the India TB report, in 2020, there were 18.05 tuberculosis notifications, which was a fall of 24% from 2019 due to the disruptions caused by the pandemic.
- According to the 2021 Global TB report released recently by the World Health Organization (WHO), for the first time in over a decade, Tuberculosis (TB) deaths have increased globally. WHO modelling projections suggest that the number of people developing TB and dying from the disease could be much higher in 2021 and 2022.
News Source: PIB
