'Adopt A TB Patient' Scheme To Rope In More People To Achieve TB-Free India- Here's All You Need To Know

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), there were 30 high tuberculosis (TB) burdened countries across the world that accounted for about 86 per cent of new TB cases. Among the countries that were leading this global count was India.

The number of TB incidences in the country had risen sharply by 19 per cent in the year 2021, with a total number of affected cases reported to be 19,33,381. Based on these numbers, the National TB Prevalence Survey of India found that the disease existed in 312 per 100,000 population.

With the prevalence of this serious infectious disease, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Pradhan Mantri TB-Mukt Bharat Abhiyan campaign on September 9. The initiative aims to achieve a TB-free India by 2025, five years prior to the global target of eliminating TB. This scheme, too, works on the concept of Jan Bhagidari (people's participation) and has called on people to come together to make India TB-free.

As a part of this, the scheme "Adopt a TB patient" was proposed, which enables individuals and organisations to provide for the care and needs of a TB patient. Through this means, the plan presents a better chance of fighting the deadly disease for many, including those who may not be able to afford treatments.

Adopt A TB Patient

Under this scheme, individuals, organisations, corporates, cooperative organisations, elected leaders, non-profits, and many others can come together to provide support by adopting patients with TB. The donor, known as Ni-kshay Mitra, can voluntarily pledge their support for as long as one to three years.

A person can support a patient by enrolling themselves through the official website of the scheme. Once enrolled, the Ni-kshay Mitra can offer support in the form of nutritional, diagnostic, vocational, and additional nutritional supplements.

The nutritional requirements will be met through a kit that contains sufficient supplements, the diagnostics will be overlooked by responsible laboratories, and the vocational skills will be enhanced to help the patient join the workforce. It covers all aspects, from nourishment to the social support of the patient.

The monthly nutrition kit would contain three kg rice, one and a half kg pulses, 250 grams of vegetable cooking oil and either a kg of milk powder, six litres of milk or one kg of groundnut. All of this will be provided additionally to the monetary support provided by the government.

Punjab In Lead With Highest Number Of Patients Adopted

Around 1.78 lakh patients have so far been adopted under the TB-Mukt Bharat Abhiyan campaign. Out of the total recorded 13,51,550 cases of TB patients in 2022, 9,04,425 have given their consent to be adopted. The remaining patients would be contacted for their consent, and more people would be encouraged to contribute to the campaign.

Currently, Punjab is in the lead with the highest number of TB patients adopted, followed by Haryana, Delhi, Chandigarh, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh and Himachal Pradesh. As per reports by FirstPost, the government aims to ensure all TB patients get adopted with their consent by September 17. Many experts believe that with this scheme, the country has taken a huge leap toward freeing the country of the dreaded disease.

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