Question : TB cases

Will the Minister of HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE be pleased to state:

(a) whether the Government has taken note that India continues to have the maximum TB cases in the world as per the WHO 2018 TB report and if so, the reaction of the Government thereto;

(b) whether there has been a rise in Multi-Drug Resistant (MDR) TB in the country and if so, the details thereof and steps taken to combat AntiBiotic Resistance (ABR) as a phenomenon;

(c) whether the Government is aware that most of the deaths due to Tuberculosis (TB) in India occur among young and economically productive adults and if so, the details thereof and the causes of death among people aged between 30-69 years;

(d) whether the Government has launched, a national mass media campaign ‘Cough’ to warn citizens about the links between TB and tobacco use and if so, the details thereof; and

(e) the details of plans chalked out by the Government with regard to creating awareness, timely diagnosis and treatment to eradicate TB from the country?

ANSWER
THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND
FAMILY WELFARE
(SHRI ASHWINI KUMAR CHOUBEY)
(a): Yes, as per the WHO 2018 report India is estimated to have the maximum TB cases in the world. However, in terms of incidence of Tuberculosis India ranks 35th in the world.

(b): No, As per the WHO 2018 report the incidence of Multi-drug resistant TB cases in India has reduced. However the increase in notification is due to increase in number of diagnostic facilities and number of TB patients screened for presence of drug resistance. During 2018, country has implemented policy of testing for presence of drug resistance in all notified TB patients.

(c): As per The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) – Global Burden of Disease (GBD) Comparison :
• In total deaths among people of age group 15-49, tuberculosis accounts for 8.3% of total deaths which ranks 3rd among all causes of death.
• In total deaths among people of age group 50-69, tuberculosis accounts for 5.8% of total deaths which ranks 4th among all causes of death.

(d): A mass media campaign namely “Cough” depicting the linkage between tobacco use and TB was undertaken on TV/Radio in the year 2017 for a period of 15 days and in the year 2018 for a period of one week. Now, the above campaign is underway for one month on TV/Radio during December 2018 - January 2019.

(e): The Ministry has developed the National Strategic Plan (NSP) for Tuberculosis (2017-2025) for ensuring timely diagnosis and treatment and the goal of eliminating TB by 2025.
The key focus areas are:
• Early diagnosis of all the TB patients, prompt treatment with quality assured drugs and treatment regimens along with suitable patient support systems to promote adherence.
• Engaging with the patients seeking care in the private sector.
• Prevention strategies including active case finding and contact tracing in high risk / vulnerable population
• Airborne infection control.
• Multi-sectoral response for addressing social determinants.

An intensified mass media campaign were run through different platform such as Audio-Visual (Television, Radio), Digital (3900 theatre, 4 shows per day), Outdoor (Airport Hoardings, Gantry, Cantilever, Bus Queue Shelter, Bus Branding) Print (advertisement in Newspaper such as Gazette Notification, World TB Day), Social platform such as YouTube, Twitter at National Level.