Emphasising India’s commitment to achieving the Sustainable Development Goal of malaria elimination by 2030, Smt. Aradhana Patnaik, Additional Secretary and Mission Director, National Health Mission (NHM), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, chaired a high-level review meeting with senior officers of the Ministry, National Centre for Vector Borne Diseases Control (NCVBDC), Mission Directors of National Health Missions and District Collectors of concerned States and districts.

India has made significant progress in reducing the burden of malaria through sustained and focused public health interventions. Between 2015 and 2025, malaria cases and deaths in the country declined by nearly 80%, while the number of high-burden districts decreased from 155 to 33. As many as 160 districts reported zero indigenous malaria cases during 2022–2025, reflecting sustained interruption of local transmission and the success of focused malaria control and elimination interventions.

The review focused on the 33 high-burden districts across nine States and Union Territories, which accounted for 64% of malaria cases and 54% of malaria deaths reported in 2025. Detailed State-wise reviews were undertaken for Mizoram, Odisha, Tripura, Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Maharashtra.

Smt. Aradhana Patnaik emphasised the need to maintain a high level of vigilance and adopt focused, area-specific strategies to effectively prevent and eliminate malaria. She stressed the importance of effective implementation of District Action Plans in all 33 high-burden districts, along with Village Action Plans in high-burden villages, to ensure targeted interventions based on local epidemiological and geographical conditions.

Highlighting the importance of early detection and complete treatment, the meeting stressed the need to strengthen the Test, Treat and Track strategy. Delays in diagnosis and treatment were identified as critical factors contributing to malaria deaths. States were advised to strengthen active surveillance and ensure uninterrupted availability of diagnostics and anti-malarial drugs, particularly in hard-to-reach and vulnerable areas.

The review also underscored the need to further strengthen surveillance systems and improve data quality. States were advised to review unusually high Annual Blood Examination Rates (ABER) to identify possible duplicate testing, repeated entries and inclusion of asymptomatic screening. It was emphasised that asymptomatic cases detected through mass screening should be reported separately and excluded from API and ABER calculations to ensure accurate assessment of the malaria situation and programme performance.

Smt. Aradhana Patnaik further stressed the importance of intersectoral convergence for achieving malaria elimination. She noted that health interventions alone cannot address several factors contributing to malaria transmission, including water-logging, source reduction and environmental management. States were therefore advised to strengthen coordination with the Departments of Rural Development and Urban Development, as well as Panchayati Raj Institutions, for effective implementation of environmental and vector-control measures.

Greater engagement of Self-Help Groups, community volunteers and Panchayati Raj representatives was also encouraged to strengthen community participation in early reporting of fever cases, identification of water-logging and other mosquito breeding sites, and implementation of source-reduction activities.

The meeting was attended by Shri Prabhakar, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare; Shri Nikhil Gajraj, Joint Secretary (VBD), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare; Dr. Tanu Jain, Director, NCVBDC; Mission Directors of NHM; State Programme Officers of the concerned States; District Collectors; Chief Medical Officers and District Malaria Officers of the concerned districts.

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HFW/AS & MD reviews malaria elimination program / 28 August 2026/2

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