Progress Against Tuberculosis: India’s Remarkable Achievements Highlighted in WHO’s 2024 Report

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The Global Tuberculosis (TB) Report 2024, published by the World Health Organization (WHO), highlights significant progress in the global fight against tuberculosis, with India achieving remarkable strides in closing the gap of missed TB cases since 2015.

Table of Contents

About the Global TB Report:

The Global TB Report is an annual WHO publication that offers an in-depth analysis of the TB epidemic and evaluates prevention, diagnosis, and treatment efforts at global, regional, and national levels.

Key Highlights of the 2024 Report:

Record High TB Cases: In 2023, 8.2 million people were newly diagnosed with TB, the highest count recorded since the WHO began monitoring TB globally in 1995. This is an increase from the 7.5 million cases in 2022.
TB Deaths: While TB-related deaths fell slightly from 1.32 million in 2022 to 1.25 million in 2023, the figure remains significantly higher than the 320,000 deaths attributed to COVID-19 in 2023. The overall trend of TB mortality has been decreasing since the peak seen during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Disproportionate Burden on LMICs: Thirty low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) account for 87% of the global TB burden. Notably, five countries—India (26%), Indonesia (10%), China (6.8%), the Philippines (6.8%), and Pakistan (6.3%)—together make up 56% of the global burden.
Demographics of TB Cases: The report finds that 55% of people with TB were men, 33% were women, and 12% were children and adolescents.
Key Risk Factors: Five primary risk factors for TB were highlighted: undernutrition, HIV infection, alcohol use disorders, smoking, and diabetes.

India’s Achievements:

TB Incidence and Treatment Coverage: In 2023, India reported an estimated 27 lakh TB cases, with 25.1 lakh cases diagnosed and treated, marking an 89% treatment coverage—up from 72% in 2015. This achievement reflects India’s commitment to finding and treating TB cases and decentralizing healthcare through 1.7 lakh Ayushman Arogya Mandir centers.
Decline in TB Incidence and Mortality: India’s TB incidence rate decreased from 237 per lakh in 2015 to 195 per lakh in 2023, a significant 17.7% reduction compared to the global decline of 8.3%. Additionally, TB-related deaths dropped by 21.4%, from 28 to 22 per lakh, highlighting India’s effective TB mortality reduction strategies.
National TB Elimination Programme: The Indian government has expanded and fortified the National TB Elimination Programme, backed by a 5.3-fold increase in budget allocation, from Rs. 640 crores in 2015 to Rs. 3,400 crores in 2022-23. This funding has enabled India to roll out cutting-edge diagnostics, such as AI-enabled portable chest X-rays, complementing the world’s largest TB laboratory network, comprising 7,767 rapid molecular testing centers and 87 culture testing labs.
Private Sector Participation: Private healthcare providers contributed 32.9% of TB case notifications in 2023. Between January and September 2024, private sector notifications rose to 7.22 lakh cases, supporting the program’s 87.6% treatment success rate.
Ni-Kshay Poshan Yojana (NPY): In October 2024, the government doubled the nutritional support allowance under the Ni-Kshay Poshan Yojana from Rs. 500 to Rs. 1,000 per month for the full treatment duration. So far, Rs. 3,202 crores have been distributed to over 1.13 crore beneficiaries via Direct Benefit Transfer, with the newly introduced Energy Dense Nutritional Supplementation (EDNS) benefiting undernourished TB patients.
Household Support through Ni-Kshay Mitras: The program expanded support to household contacts of TB patients, enabling Ni-Kshay Mitras to distribute food baskets to improve immunity among family members, reducing out-of-pocket expenses for TB-affected households.
New Treatment Regimen for MDR-TB: India adopted the novel BPaLM regimen for multi-drug-resistant TB (MDR-TB), which offers a shorter and more effective treatment option, demonstrating the government’s commitment to innovative solutions in TB treatment.
Other Initiatives: Under the Pradhan Mantri TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyan, over 54,000 new Ni-Kshay Mitras registered in 2024, and 8.3 lakh food baskets were distributed. Additionally, 12.23 lakh individuals received TB preventive treatment. India also launched an adult BCG vaccination study in collaboration with ICMR, with 81.4 lakh doses administered across 14 states and UTs.

“Towards a TB-Free World: Global Progress and Challenges on the Path to 2030”

The global community, including all WHO and UN Member States, has reaffirmed its commitment to ending the TB epidemic through the End TB Strategy and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Goals of the End TB Strategy:

2030 Targets:
- 90% reduction in TB-related deaths compared to 2015 levels.
- 80% reduction in TB incidence rate compared to 2015.
2025 Milestones:
- 75% reduction in TB deaths.
- 50% reduction in TB incidence.

These targets were reinforced in two UN high-level meetings on TB, held in 2018 and 2023, where additional goals were set, focusing on increased funding, expanding treatment coverage, and accelerating vaccine development for TB.

Current Global Trends:

Stabilization of New Cases: The global rise in TB cases has begun to slow, showing signs of stabilization.
Decline in TB Mortality: Annual TB-related deaths are on a downward trend.
Regional Progress: The WHO African and European regions are progressing well towards the 2025 milestones.
Record High Diagnoses: The number of newly diagnosed TB cases worldwide reached an all-time high in 2023, reflecting improved case detection.
Treatment Success Rates:
- High success rates for drug-susceptible TB treatment are being sustained.
- Treatment outcomes for drug-resistant TB are improving.
Preventive Treatment Expansion: Coverage for TB preventive treatment remains strong among people living with HIV and is expanding for household contacts of TB patients.