News:Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare has launched the ‘TB Harega Desh Jeetega Campaign’ along with the National TB Prevalence Survey.
Facts:
About Harega Desh Jeetega Campaign:
- The campaign aims to improve and expand the reach of Tuberculosis care services across the country by 2022.
- The three strong pillars of the campaign include (a)clinical approach, (b)public health component and (c)active community participation.
- There are some other supporting aspects of the campaign including patient support, private sector engagement, political and administrative commitment at all levels.
- The government will also ensure that all patients at private or public hospitals receive free-of-cost and high-quality TB care.
National TB Prevalence Survey:
- Union Health Minister has also flagged off a van for the National TB Prevalence Survey.
- In all,25 such vans will be part of the prevalence survey, which will go to 625 clusters of the country and check for TB. This sample survey is to be completed by 2020.
- This shall present national and state level data which will be used as a policy tool for further interventions.
Additional information:
Other initiatives:
- The Government of India has partnered with the Global Fund to launch JEET (Joint Effort for Elimination of TB) a private sector engagement program operating across the country.
- In 2018,the government had launched the Nikshay Poshan Yojana, a direct benefit transfer (DBT) scheme to provide nutritional support to TB patients.
- Under the scheme,TB patients have been receiving Rs. 500 per month for the entire duration of treatment.
Tuberculosis:
- Tuberculosis(TB) is an infectious airborne bacterial disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis.It most commonly affects the lungs but can also damage other parts of the body.
- TB kills an estimated 4.8 lakh Indians every year and more than 1,400 every day.India has the highest TB burden in the world and also has more than a million ‘missing’ cases every year that are not notified.
