Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare J.P. Nadda today chaired a high-level review meeting with all States and Union Territories to assess the progress of the TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyan and chart the way forward towards achieving a TB-free India.
Mr Nadda held the meeting through video conferencing with Health Ministers and senior officials from States and UTs. Mr Nadda emphasised that the second phase of the intensified 100-day TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan, scheduled to conclude in the first week of July , represents a critical last-mile effort to identify every missing tuberculosis case and ensure that no vulnerable individual is left behind.
Mr Nadda noted that India has made remarkable progress in its fight against tuberculosis. He informed that the country’s TB incidence has declined to 187 cases per lakh population in 2024 compared to the figure of 243 cases per lakh in 2014. He further said that TB mortality has also witnessed a significant reduction and stands at 21 per lakh of the population in 2024 compared to 34 per lakh in 2014.
Mr Nadda highlighted that more than 28 crore people have already been screened, 20 Lakh people have received TB preventive treatment and 5.7 lakh new Nikshay Mitras have been added so far under the intensified campaigns since December 2024.
The Health Minister also underscored the importance of nutritional support in reducing TB mortality and improving treatment outcomes. He called upon the States to actively engage their MPs and MLAs to review TB elimination efforts in their respective constituencies through Jan Bhagidari. He urged the State Health Ministers to conduct district-level analysis to identify gaps and ensure timely corrective action. He stated that the vision of a TB-Mukt Bharat, as envisaged by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, can be achieved only through sustained collective action and whole-of-society participation. He emphasised that the mission will attain its true success only when every State, Union Territory, and district in the country becomes TB Mukt.
During the review, it was informed that since the launch of the second phase of the intensified 100-days TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan, so far over 1.7 lakh Ayushman Arogya Shivirs have been held, covering over 1.20 lakh high-risk villages. The review also highlighted the launch of the TB Mukt Bharat App, integrated with the AI-powered chatbot ‘Khushi’, to facilitate citizen engagement and improve access to TB-related information and services.
