Punjab health department has raised concern over the poor performance of most districts in the state’s TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyan. The 100-day campaign, ‘Nikshay Shivir’, launched in 18 districts of the state on December 7, 2024, aims to accelerate tuberculosis (TB) detection, reduce mortality, and prevent new cases.
Barring Kapurthala, all other districts have been faltering on the first step itself — screening of vulnerable populations. Documents accessed by HT have revealed that out of the total 18 districts, 10, including Patiala, the home district of Punjab health minister Dr Balbir Singh, have a screening percentage of less than 20%.
Other poor-performing districts include Barnala, Moga, Tarn Taran, Fazilka, Fatehgarh Sahib and Mansa.
Health officials have already directed these underperforming districts to take immediate measures to improve their performance.
Data further showed that there are 32.65 lakh vulnerable persons in 18 districts, but only 5.75 lakh have been screened as of January 6. The vulnerable population includes symptomatic general populations, malnourished persons, diabetes patients, HIV patients, smokers, alcoholics, and household contacts of existing TB patients.
X-Ray exam of only 3%
{{/usCountry}}X-Ray exam of only 3%
{{/usCountry}}Currently, there are around 58,000 TB patients in the state.
As per the available data, around 18, 099 people have been enrolled in the campaign in 18 districts so far. Of these, X-Ray examinations have been conducted on 508 people – which is only 3%. X-Ray of the lung is the first test for diagnosis of TB.
When asked about the poor performance, Dr Rajesh Bhasker, state TB officer, said, “Only a few districts have not performed to satisfactory levels. I am hopeful that these districts will improve by next week when the campaign will be better streamlined.”