World Tuberculosis Day: Candlelight Vigil at India Gate for TB Victims

Tuberculosis claimed nearly 5 lakh lives last year. A candlelight vigil was organized at India Gate to pay tribute to the lives lost due to tuberculosis last year.

On the eve of the World Tuberculosis Day, Members of the Parliament, policymakers, TB patients, survivors, and citizens of the civil society, gathered at the India Gate to pay tribute to the nearly 5 lakh lives lost due to tuberculosis last year.

The gathering at the India Gate signed a pledge -- unite to end TB. The signatories, who lit candles at the site, have lent their complete support to achieve India’s goal to eliminate TB by 2025.Ms. Blessina Kumar, who leads the Global Coalition of TB Activists, said, “We stand with every TB patient for the trauma and stigma he or she has had to face. This show of strength and solidarity today is a sign of our concerted efforts to fight and end TB in India.”

Tuberculosis - Spread - Symptoms - Diagnosis - Treatment - FAQs
Tuberculosis, caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, primarily affects the lung. It may spread to other organs.

‘Twenty-seven percent of the world's tuberculosis cases is from India.’

India carries the highest burden of TB – 27% of the TB cases from around the world is from this country. In 2016, there were 28 lakh new TB patients and 79,000 patients of drug-resistant TB, a more severe form of the disease which is also more difficult to treat. Additionally, TB is known to be five times more common amongst economically deprived classes and incurs huge costs on its patients and their families.

To end TB, the Government of India’s Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme will soon be releasing the National Strategic Plan for TB Control (2017-2025), which will pave the way for achieving the elimination goal.

Mr. Dalbir Singh, President of the Global Coalition Against TB said, “TB continues to affect the lives of millions of our fellow Indians. We, at the Global Coalition Against TB for the past five years have been working to raise the profile of the disease at the highest political level. It is heartening to see increased political support toward the cause as we work toward eliminating the disease by 2025.”

TB Alliance Sublicenses Promising Tuberculosis Drug �Sutezolid� from the Medicines Patent Pool
The license agreement announced on the World Tuberculosis Day comes in an effort to fight multidrug-resistant tuberculosis with an effective drug called sutezolid.

The members of Global Coalition Against TB, a forum of Indian policymakers, also met Pranab Mukherjee, President of India, at Rashtrapati Bhawan, to discuss possible measures of TB control in the country.

Malnourished Children More Prone To Tuberculosis
Undernutrition lowers body's immunity and makes difficult the fight against tuberculosis (TB). Infants and children under five years are more vulnerable.

Source-Medindia

Tuberculosis: India Accounts for 24% of the World's Tuberculosis Cases
The spread of TB in India is larger than previously projected. Multi-drug resistant TB is growing at a faster rate than discovery of newer, more potent drugs.