WHO applauds India’s ‘encouraging gains’ in fight against tuberculosis

The World Health Organization has commended India for making “encouraging gains” in its efforts to eliminate tuberculosis.

WHO South-East Asia said in a statement on Tuesday that India has narrowed the TB detection gap and recorded signs of improvement in TB-related mortality.

The statement referred to the Global Tuberculosis Report 2025, which shows that TB levels in 2024 continued to differ across the South-East Asia Region. Myanmar and Timor-Leste reported some of the highest TB incidence rates globally, with around 480–500 cases per lakh population.

Countries such as India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, and Thailand registered incidence levels between 146 and 269 per 100,000. These trends show a steady but slow decline. In absolute numbers, India had an estimated 2.71 million people with TB. Bangladesh had 384,000 cases, Myanmar 263,000, Thailand 104,000, and Nepal 67,000.

“Several countries demonstrated encouraging gains. Bangladesh, India, and Thailand notified a large proportion of estimated cases, narrowing detection gaps,” the statement said. TB-related deaths have also shown improvement in several member states. India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, and Thailand recorded declines in estimated TB deaths compared to 2015. WHO said this progress was supported by the recovery of essential TB services after the COVID-19 pandemic.

However, WHO emphasised that the region is not moving fast enough to meet the ‘2025 End TB’ targets.

The report noted that 10.7 million people developed TB and 1.23 million died from it in 2024. Although the South-East Asia Region makes up less than a quarter of the world’s population, it still accounts for more than one in every three new TB cases globally each year.

Drug-resistant TB remains a serious challenge, with 150,000 new cases estimated in 2024. The region has reduced its TB incidence by 16 per cent since 2015, which is slightly better than the global average reduction of 12 per cent. But deaths are not decreasing quickly enough. The region’s TB incidence rate of 201 per lakh people is still much higher than the global average of 131.

“Tuberculosis continues to threaten health security and development across the South-East Asia Region, hitting the poorest the hardest,” said Dr Catharina Boehme, Officer-in-Charge, WHO South-East Asia. “We know what works: early detection, rapid treatment, prevention, and strong primary health care. What’s needed now is speed, scale, and sustained political and financial commitment,” Dr Boehme said.

The region has made important progress. Treatment coverage now exceeds 85 per cent, and treatment success rates remain among the highest worldwide. Preventive therapy for people living with HIV and household contacts has expanded significantly and is now above global averages.

Despite these advances, undernutrition and diabetes continue to be the region’s leading TB risk factors. They contribute to nearly 850,000 new cases each year. WHO said that 44 per cent of TB-affected families face catastrophic costs, while funding for TB programmes has stalled, putting recent gains at risk.

WHO urged countries to safeguard and expand essential TB services and integrate them into primary health care. It also highlighted the need for stronger social protection, including nutrition support, cash transfers, and transport assistance. Investment in communities, innovation, and digital tools will be essential to close remaining gaps.

“The South-East Asia Region has shown that progress is possible through leadership, innovation, and collaboration,” said Dr Boehme. “We have the tools to end TB. The time to act decisively is now.”