Varanasi: Over the last nine years, public participation through initiatives like ‘Ni-kshay Mitra’ has played a very important role in the fight against tuberculosis, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday (March 24). The Prime Minister said this after launching TB-Mukt Panchayat initiative, the official pan-India rollout of a shorter preventive treatment and family-centric care model for TB and release of India’s Annual TB Report 2023. The Prime Minister was addressing the ‘One World TB Summit’ in Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh.
The Prime Minister emphasised that India’s new vision and approach should be known by the whole world.
In the last nine years, India has worked together on many fronts in this fight against TB. Such as through people’s participation, enhancing nutrition, treatment through innovation, full use of technology, and wellness and prevention, and missions like Fit India, Khelo India and Yoga, he said.
He stressed that public participation has played a very important role in the fight against tuberculosis. PM Modi said,
We had urged people to adopt a TB patient, under ‘Ni-kshay Mitra’. After this mission, close to 10 lakh TB patients have been adopted by the common people of India. You will be surprised to know that even 10-12-year old children in India are contributing to the fight by becoming ‘Ni-kshay Mitra’. The economic assistance of these Ni-kshay Mitra’ has crossed more than 1 lakh crore. Such a huge community initiative running in India is very inspiring.
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The Prime Minister said that around 2 lakh crore have been directly sent into the accounts of 75 lakh patients through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT).
We connected the patients through Ayushman Bharat, we have increased the number of TB laboratories, and we have also increased focus on specific areas having more TB patients. Under this, our initiative is ‘TB Mukt Panchayat’, where the representatives will take a resolution that not a single TB patient will be there in the village, he added
PM Modi further added,
2030 is the global target to eradicate TB but India is now working on the target of ending TB by the year 2025. India’s local approach against TB has global potential. 80 per cent of TB medicines are manufactured in India which exhibits the talent and capability of our pharma which is working for the Global Good.
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The Prime Minister also distributed awards to selected States and Union Territories and districts for their progress towards ending TB at the ‘One World TB Summit’ in Varanasi.
Addressing the event, prime minister Modi said, It is a matter of happiness that this summit is happening in Kashi. Kashi is that everlasting flow, which has been a witness of people’s hard work. It shows that however, difficult the situation is, if everybody tries, then a way definitely comes out.
He added that India’s vision of ‘Vasudhaiv Kutumbakam’ is giving an integrated vision and integrated solution to the whole world. PM Modi said,
Based on that, India has also kept this year’s theme as ‘One Earth One Family One Future’. This theme is a commitment of a combined future of the whole world as a family. Some time ago, India also took the initiative to take forward the vision of ‘One Earth, One Health’ and now through ‘One World TB Summit’ India is fulfilling another resolution of Global Good.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
NDTV – Dettol have been working towards a clean and healthy India since 2014 via the Banega Swachh India initiative, which is helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. The campaign aims to highlight the inter-dependency of humans and the environment, and of humans on one another with the focus on One Health, One Planet, One Future – Leaving No One Behind. It stresses on the need to take care of, and consider, everyone’s health in India – especially vulnerable communities – the LGBTQ population, indigenous people, India’s different tribes, ethnic and linguistic minorities, people with disabilities, migrants, geographically remote populations, gender and sexual minorities. In wake of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign will continue to raise awareness on the same along with focussing on the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children, fight malnutrition, mental wellbeing, self care, science and health, adolescent health & gender awareness. Along with the health of people, the campaign has realised the need to also take care of the health of the eco-system. Our environment is fragile due to human activity, which is not only over-exploiting available resources, but also generating immense pollution as a result of using and extracting those resources. The imbalance has also led to immense biodiversity loss that has caused one of the biggest threats to human survival – climate change. It has now been described as a “code red for humanity.” The campaign will continue to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene. Banega Swasth India will also be taking forward the dream of Swasth Bharat, the campaign feels that only a Swachh or clean India where toilets are used and open defecation free (ODF) status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and the country can become a Swasth or healthy India.
