Pune District Tuberculosis Officer Highlights Efforts To Combat TB Ahead Of World TB Day | Twitter: Sudarsan Pattnaik
Ahead of World TB Day on March 24, Dr. Vikas Vadgave, District Tuberculosis Officer (DTO) of Pune, provided an update on the city’s ongoing efforts to combat tuberculosis (TB). He shared that Pune district has been actively screening and identifying TB patients, with around 7,600 cases reported from the rural areas of Pune. The district has designated officers to oversee TB control in rural, urban, and PCMC areas, ensuring comprehensive coverage.
Dr. Vadgave also highlighted the city’s awareness campaigns and the support provided to patients, including a monthly allowance of Rs 1,000 and food baskets under CSR funding.
On this World TB Day, the state health department focuses on scaling up evidence-based interventions, early and accurate diagnosis, preventive treatment, and high-quality care for drug-resistant TB.
In 2024, Maharashtra reported a total of 2.24 lakh cases. Around 40,471 new cases of tuberculosis were diagnosed in the state as part of the 100-day campaign of the National TB Elimination Programme (NTEP) that concluded on March 20. The campaign was implemented across 347 districts in the country and commenced on December 7 of the previous year.
The campaign was carried out in 17 rural districts and 13 municipal corporations in the state.
Various initiatives to defeat TB on in state
On behalf of the Department of Public Health, Government of Maharashtra, various initiatives are being effectively implemented to eradicate tuberculosis by 2025 under the National Tuberculosis Eradication Program.
A total of 1.36 crore people were screened for tuberculosis. Of the suspected TB cases, nearly 3.8 lakh individuals were tested through chest X-ray examinations, while the sputum of 2.9 lakh individuals was tested using Nucleic Acid Amplification Testing (NAAT) that detects genetic material. As part of this massive exercise, microscopic examination was conducted on 1.83 lakh individuals suspected of having TB.
“The report is registered on the Nikshay Portal, a web-based system for managing TB patients in the country, developed by the Centre to help control and monitor TB cases,” said Dr. Sandeep Sangle, Joint Director of Health (TB), Maharashtra.
According to the report, out of the new 2.3 lakh cases, 1.1 lakh cases were reported from public sector hospitals, while 1.1 lakh were from private sector hospitals. In the gender-wise breakdown, 56% of the cases were reported among men, and 44% among women.
