Dimapur reports 90 percent of leprosy cases in Nagaland
Dimapur reports 90 percent of leprosy cases in Nagaland
AIR PICS
In Nagaland, Dimapur has reported 90 per cent of leprosy cases, out of the 31 cases reported in the State till date. He said, out of the 31 cases, 25 are non-Naga migrant workers comprising 80 percent and the remaining six are Nagas.
This was stated by Commissioner & Secretary of Health and Family Welfare Department, Y Kikheto Sema Mr Sema during a two-day Regional Review Meeting of the National Leprosy Eradication Programme ( NLEP) for Northeastern States and Training on National Strategic Plan for Leprosy 2024-2027 and Nikushth 2.0 that commenced in Kohima today.
Mr Sema said, leprosy continues to be a public health challenge, despite advances in all spheres of medical science.
He said, Assam, Nagaland and Tripura were the top 3 North East States with leprosy, however, Nagaland was the first State to achieve the WHO target of ‘Elimination Status’ (one case in 10,000 populations) in 1998.
Asserting that India is making progress and new leprosy cases are declining every year, Mr Sema said our Nation has promised to be “Leprosy Free by 2027 three years ahead of the Sustainable Development Goal. To this, Mr Sema called for the support and coordination of all the stakeholders, adding that government alone cannot achieve its goal.
Principal Advisor National Centre for Disease Control Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Dr Anil Kumar said, India has the best Leprosy surveillance programme in the world and that it can achieve zero Leprosy country.
He said, Nagaland can become the first State to achieve zero Leprosy State in the country and suggested that the state need to have a good surveillance system for migrant populations to detect early Leprosy cases.
On the occasion, the Commissioner & Secretary along with other health officials from the Ministry released the National Framework for Integration of Mental Health Services for Leprosy Patients. A Video on Nikusth 2.0 and the leprosy flipbook and a poster on the National Leprosy Eradication programme were also released.
