The Union Health Minister Shri Jagat Prakash Nadda met Members of Parliament (MPs) from Karnataka and Keralam today on the sidelines of the Monsoon Session of Parliament. He was also joined by Shri Pralhad Joshi, Union Minister of Education, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution & New and Renewable Energy; Smt. Anupriya Patel, Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare & Chemicals and Fertilizers; Shri Suresh Gopi, Union Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas and Tourism; Smt. Shobha Karandlaje, Union Minister of State for MSME and MoS for Labour and Employment along with other parliamentarians.

The meeting, titled "Parliamentarians Championing a TB Mukt Bharat," brought together Members of Parliament from the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha from Karnataka and Keralam across party lines at the Extended Parliament House Annexe underscoring a unified political resolve to accelerate progress towards a TB-free India. The meeting was part of a series of sensitisation interactions chaired by the Union Health Minister with Members of Parliament from states across the country, including West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and others. Shri Nadda informed the Members that similar consultations have been held with MPs from other States as well, as part of the Government's whole-of-government approach to accelerate TB elimination.

The meeting reviewed the progress made under the 100-Day TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan, implemented in two phases to accelerate India's efforts towards TB elimination. The first phase, launched on 7^th December 2024, initially covered 347 high-priority districts before being expanded nationwide and concluded on 24^th March 2025. The second phase, launched on 24^th March 2026 and recently concluded in July focused on nearly 1.58 lakh high-risk villages and urban wards across the country. The meeting looked at the progress of TB activities in the state and UTs, and discussed the way forward.

Addressing the gathering, Shri Jagat Prakash Nadda described the campaign as “a defining moment in the nation’s fight against tuberculosis, built on innovation, compassion and unwavering political will.” He highlighted India's accelerated gains in TB elimination on the global stage. He noted that “the country has recorded a 21% decline in TB incidence between 2015 and 2024, nearly twice the global pace, and has achieved a treatment coverage rate of 92%, as per the WHO Global TB Report 2025.” Shri Nadda underlined that expanding outreach in screening, treatment, and patient support in Karnataka and Keralam will be critical in translating national momentum into community-level impact.

The Union Minister highlighted the remarkable success of the recently concluded 100-Day TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan, which ran from March 24 to July 4, 2026. The campaign screened over 2.02 crore vulnerable individuals across the country and detected over 7 lakh new TB cases, including 1.97 lakh asymptomatic cases who would have otherwise remained undetected. Emphasizing the decisive role of political leadership, Shri Nadda called upon parliamentarians to anchor TB elimination efforts in their constituencies through sustained public engagement, administrative oversight, and social mobilization. He noted that “TB Mukt Bharat is not merely a health programme, but a people’s movement driven by collective ownership.”

In his concluding remarks, Shri Nadda commended the parliamentarians for their commitment and expressed confidence in the state’s potential to lead. He observed that the close of the 100-day campaign marks not the end of responsibility but the point at which deeper, sustained work begins, and that the programme’s success would be measured by consistent progress in every district.

Placing their efforts in context, the Health Secretary Smt. Punya Salila Srivastava shared that Karnataka and Keralam, which have vulnerable factors like urban settings, migrant population, urban slums, traditional health-seeking behaviour, under-nutrition, alcohol/tobacco use, high burden of HIV & diabetes, elderly population with comorbidities, construction & industrial workforce, hilly & tribal areas, stone quarries, silk weavers, workers in coffee estate & tea plantations workers, carry a high burden of TB.

The Additional Secretary, Health and Family Welfare, Smt. Aradhana Patnaik highlighted the technological foundation that has powered the campaign, noting that India has scaled molecular testing from a few hundred machines a decade ago to over 11,000 today, supported by nearly 3,000 AI-enabled handheld X-ray units in the field, built on homegrown innovation to ensure that no patient is left behind. She presented a snapshot of Karnataka and Keralam’s performance across key indicators such as TB notifications, treatment success, preventive treatment coverage, and alignment with national elimination benchmarks. She noted that during the 100-day campaign, the two states devised specific strategies taking Ayushman Arogya Shivirs directly into urban slums, construction sites and migrant clusters to bring screening and care closer to those who need them most.

The MPs from Karnataka and Keralam, present in the meeting reaffirmed their commitment to intensify awareness campaigns, stigma reduction efforts, and Ni-kshay Shivirs to promote early detection, especially among vulnerable groups, irrespective of whether they display any symptoms of TB or not. The parliamentarians will also be strengthening oversight of TB services at district and block levels to ensure quality diagnostics and patient-centric care are available at the last mile. Building on the efforts under the TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan, they will continue leading Jan Andolan to mobilise communities to provide nutritional, psychosocial and livelihood assistance to those affected by TB.

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SR