Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) are diseases that occur in the tropics, typically in low and middle-income nations.

  • India has the world’s highest absolute burden of at least ten major NTDs, including hookworm, dengue, lymphatic filariasis, leprosy, visceral leishmaniasis or kala-azar, and rabies.
  • The World Health Organization (WHO) recognizes 20 NTDs.
  • Primarily persist in areas with unsafe water, poor sanitation, and limited access to healthcare.

Impacts

  • Health & Nutrition: They cause chronic morbidity, disfigurement, malnutrition, and cognitive impairment in children (especially STH).
  • Socio-Economic Burden: NTDs trap families in a cycle of poverty due to lost wages, high healthcare expenditures, and intense social stigma (particularly surrounding Leprosy and Lymphatic Filariasis).
  • Vulnerable Demographics: Rural populations, women, children, and marginalized communities face the highest burden.

Government of India Initiatives

  • National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme (NVBDCDP): The central umbrella program framing policies and surveillance for NTDs like Kala-azar and Lymphatic Filariasis.
  • Mass Drug Administration (MDA): Periodic administration of preventive medicines to entire at-risk populations to stop the transmission of Lymphatic Filariasis and STH.
  • National Deworming Day (NDD): Conducted biannually to administer Albendazole tablets to children aged 1–19 across schools and Anganwadi centers.
  • National Leprosy Eradication Programme (NLEP): Aimed at early detection, free Multi-Drug Therapy (MDT), and reducing disability and stigma.
  • Wage Compensation Schemes: Financial support given to patients (e.g., for Kala-azar) to cover loss of wages during treatment.

Global Frameworks and Milestones

  • WHO’s NTD Roadmap (2021–2030): Targets a 90% reduction in the number of people requiring interventions for NTDs and the elimination of at least one NTD in 100 countries by 2030. 
  •  The London Declaration on NTDs (2012) & Kigali Declaration (2022): Global political commitments bringing together governments, pharmaceutical companies, and NGOs to pledge resources and donate medicines to eliminate NTDs.
  • Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): SDG Target 3.3 explicitly aims to end the epidemics of AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, and neglected tropical diseases by 2030.

 

Source: The Hindu