New Delhi: President Droupadi Murmu on Friday appealed for collective work towards TB elimination in the spirit of Jan Bhaagidari on a war footing. “When a welfare scheme is made in the interest of people, its chances of success increase manifold,” said Murmu while launching the Pradhan Mantri TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan.
“It is because TB causes the largest number of deaths among all other infectious diseases in our country,” she said. Murmu noted that India has a little less than 20 percent of the world’s population, but has more than 25 percent of the total TB patients in the world. “This is a matter of concern. And most of the people affected by TB come from the poor section of society,” Murmu said.
The President said that the thinking and methodology of ‘New India’ is to make India a leading nation of the world.
“India has set an example to the world in tackling the COVID-19 pandemic. The policy of ‘New India’ to move forward with confidence is also visible in the field of TB eradication. According to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, all nations have set the goal of eradicating TB by the year 2030. But the Government of India has set the target of eradicating TB by the year 2025 and efforts are being made at every level to fulfil this resolution,” she said.
The President also launched the Ni-kshay Mitra initiative to ensure additional diagnostic, nutritional, and vocational support to those on TB treatment, and encouraged elected representatives, corporates, NGOs, and individuals to come forward as donors to help the patients complete their journey toward recovery.
Also read:President Droupadi Murmu greets teachers on eve of Teacher's Day
The Ni-kshay 2.0 portal will facilitate providing additional patient support to improve treatment outcomes of TB patients, augmenting community involvement in meeting India’s commitment to end TB by 2025 and leveraging Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) opportunities.
Murmu appreciated the tireless efforts of the healthcare workers, community leaders, and citizens in managing the COVID-19 pandemic and underlined the need to adopt a similar whole-of-society approach to eliminate TB from the country. She reiterated the goal of universal health coverage ensuring no one is left behind in accessing affordable quality healthcare through all levels of the health system.
Highlighting the progress made through the Ayushman Bharat scheme in this endeavour, she expressed confidence in the pivotal role of the strengthened healthcare system in achieving TB elimination goals. She stressed on enhanced awareness regarding the treatment for TB, a curable disease.
Speaking on the occasion, Union Health Minister Dr Mansukh Mandaviya said that the Pradhan Mantri TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyan is an extension of the Prime Minister’s citizen-centric policies. Mandaviya attributed the success of the TB programme to key indicators such as TB case notifications and consistent efforts that led to monthly notification reporting to reach pre-pandemic levels by end of 2021.
The Health Minister emphasized that a 360-degree approach is the cornerstone of TB elimination in India and observed that a societal approach that brings together people from all backgrounds into a Jan Andolan is needed to achieve the ambitious target of eliminating TB by 2025.
Mandaviya informed that there are roughly 13.5 lakh TB patients registered in the Ni-kshay portal, out of which 8.9 lakh active TB patients have given their consent for adoption. The Ni-kshay digital portal will provide a platform for community support for persons with TB.
He urged all citizens, NGOs, corporate houses, elected representatives etc, to support the movement by becoming Ni-kshay Mitras and convene gatherings to discuss the initiative, so no one with TB is left behind.
