Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, Smt. Anupriya Patel inaugurated the India Innovation Summit – Pioneering Solutions to End TB, at Bharat Mandapam Convention Centre, here today. The Summit is being organized jointly by the Department of Health Research-Indian Council of Medical Research (DHR-ICMR) and the Central TB Division (CTD), Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW). The summit aims to accelerate India’s progress towards TB elimination by 2025.
Addressing the gathering, Smt. Anupriya Patel highlighted India’s remarkable progress in TB control and the pivotal role of innovation in this mission. She stated that “under the pathbreaking leadership of our Hon’ble Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, India’s public health landscape has seen a remarkable transformation over the past decade and many of you have played a critical role in ensuring innovations and quality healthcare services reach the last mile.”
Highlighting the achievements of the National TB Elimination Program (NTEP), Smt. Patel stated that “the Program is steadily progressing towards the goal of eliminating TB by 2025. The number of missing cases has been reduced from 15 lakh in 2015 to 2.5 lakhs in 2023. The programme was able to notify 25.5 lakh TB and 26.07 lakh cases in 2023 and 2024-the highest ever.”
Citing the WHO’s Global TB Report 2024, Smt. Patel stated that “the incidence rate of TB in India has shown a 17.7% decline from 237 per lakh population in 2015 to 195 per lakh population in 2023. TB deaths have reduced by 21.4% from 28 per lakh population in 2015 to 22 per lakh population in 2023.” She also added that “TB treatment coverage in India increased by 32% in last eight years from 53% in 2015 to 85% in 2023.”
The Union Minister of State also highlighted the new initiatives under NTEP. She stated that “a shorter and safer oral Bedaquiline-containing drug resistant TB treatment regimen has been rolled out across all State/ UTs that has improved treatment success rates of drug-resistant TB patients from 68% in 2020 to 75% in 2022. A more efficacious treatment regimen, mBPaL (Bedaquiline, Pretomanid, Linezolid (300mg) has also been introduced for drug-resistant TB which is 80% more efficacious for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR TB) and will reduce treatment duration to 6 months.”
She also highlighted the Energy Dense Nutritional Support (EDNS), offered to under-nourished TB patients during the first 2 months of their treatment along with drugs. Talking about the Ni-kshay Mitra Initiative that was launched with the objectives to provide additional support to TB patients in order to improve treatment outcomes, augment community involvement and leverage Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities, Smt. Patel stated that “this initiative was launched to bring together people from all backgrounds into a ‘Jan Andolan’ and escalate the progress toward TB elimination.” She further added that “the Government has doubled the financial assistance under Ni-kshay Poshan Yojana (NPY) for nutritional support to TB patients from Rs 500/per month/per patient to Rs 1,000 per month per patient effective from 1st November 2024 while the Ni-kshay Mitra Initiative has also been expanded wherein food baskets to TB patients and their household contacts are being provided.
In addition to this, Smt. Patel also underscored the progress of the ongoing TB Mukt Bharat– 100 Days Intensified Campaign. Launched on 7th December 2024, the campaign covers 455 selected high priority districts and involves a comprehensive strategy to mobilise resources, raise awareness and intensify actions against TB across all prioritized districts. The campaign activities involve active TB case finding in vulnerable populations, early diagnosis, prompt treatment initiation and linkage to nutritional care. The report of the campaign will be released on World TB Day on 24th March 2025.
Underlining the new Innovations rolled out under the program, Smt. Patel stated that “ICMR has validated three indigenous handheld X ray devices, which makes it possible to reach vulnerable population groups for TB screening. Hand-held devices offer advantages of low weight, portability, and low radiation exposure and are being used in the 100-day accelerated programme.” She also added that “ICMR partnered with Institute of Plasma Research, Ahmedabad, to develop DeepCXR, a tool for artificial intelligence-based reporting chest X ray films. AI tools are expected to be a gamechanger in detecting presumptive TB patients and quick initiation of treatment. ICMR also validated CyTb skin test for detection of latent TB infection, developed by Serum Institute of India Ltd. against Interferon gamma release assay (IGRA), which is the preferred test for latent TB detection. However, IGRA is expensive and it may not be feasible to be introduced in resource limited countries. Overall performance of CyTb was better than the currently used tuberculin skin test.”
Smt. Patel further added that “ICMR conducted a multicentric validation of PathoDetectTM an indigenous molecular diagnostic NAAT test which can perform 32 tests simultaneously, detects MTB complex and first line drug resistance to rifampicin (RIF) and Isoniazid (INH) simultaneously as a one step process. Overall, the performance of PathoDetectTM was comparable to other molecular assays. Deployment of this test in the 100-day program, along with the already available TruNat test, has enhanced capacity of molecular diagnosis of TB and early detection of drug resistance. Moreover, the Quantiplus MTB FAST Detection Kit developed by Huwel Lifesciences is the first in world indigenous open system RTPCR kits developed in India and validated by ICMR. In comparison to the gold standard liquid culture, sensitivity of the kit is 86 % and specificity is 96 %. These kits are likely to be low-cost and have a potential to expand the outreach of TB molecular testing, including more than 3300 RTPCR machines used during the COVID-19 pandemic.”
“Health Technology Assessment India under Department of Health Research has assessed the TB health Technologies like Truenat for TB diagnosis, BPAL/BPALM regime for MDR TB, Techo plus for tracking and managing TB health services, AI enabled chest X-ray diagnosis and TMEAD an adherence monitoring device for TB treatment”, she further added.
Underlining the role of innovations in TB elimination, Smt. Patel stated that “innovations are crucial for TB elimination, offering faster and more accurate diagnostics, improved treatment regimens, and better prevention strategies. Use of digital health, artificial intelligence, data collection and health promotion will also play a critical role in reaching the “missing millions” of people with TB who go undiagnosed, and therefore untreated, each year.” In her concluding remarks, she encouraged all innovators “to continue their endeavour to develop useful tools for introduction into the program and help achieve the goal of TB elimination.”
In his address, Dr. V. K Paul, Member NITI Aayog, stated that “the event is an important step in the direction of innovation-led push in achieving the goal of elimination of TB. The Summit is bringing together pioneers in TB research and technology to translate ideas into impactful solutions.
He stated that “India has achieved tremendous success in the direction of eliminating TB under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi.” India is resolved to eliminate 5 diseases in the coming 5 years that include: Leprosy, Lymphatic filariasis, Measles, Rubella and Kala-azar, he further stated.
Dr. Paul also underlined the need of advanced and better tools for diagnosis of drug-resistant TB and underlined the potential of AI to provide solutions for TB detection and elimination. He further stated that for elimination of TB, technology that can be taken to scale is of high priority along with facilitation of newer technologies and their approval while ensuring funding for important innovations and identify areas for further research.
He concluded his remarks by stating that “India’s efforts for TB elimination are truly global that will be beneficial globally”. He put emphasis on the need of bringing innovative ideas to the forefront that can “bring speed and scale to TB elimination and added that the summit will also help facilitate spin-offs for elimination of other diseases from the country.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Rajiv Bahl, Secretary, DHR & Director General, ICMR, highlighted the transformative role of research and indigenous technologies in India’s TB elimination effort. Emphasizing the role of technology in detection, treatment, rehabilitation and prevention of TB, he stated that “scientific advancements have been at the forefront of our fight against TB. Through rigorous research, we have validated innovative diagnostics, treatment regimens, and AI-based tools that enhance early detection and improve patient outcomes.” He added that “the summit serves as a crucial platform to bring together stakeholders and fast-track the adoption of these solutions into national TB programs.” He underlined the crucial role played by homegrown innovations benefit not only India but also contribute to the global TB elimination mission.
The one-and-a-half-day summit features over 200 groundbreaking innovations, including handheld X-ray devices for rapid TB screening, AI-powered diagnostic tools, and new molecular testing technologies. The event provides a platform for innovators to engage with policymakers, regulators, and experts, ensuring that promising solutions are integrated into national TB programs.
With over 1,200 participants from academia, industry, healthcare, and research, the summit aims to foster crucial collaborations. A key focus is identifying innovations with potential for large-scale implementation and linking them with government initiatives for further development. The India Innovation Summit reaffirms the government’s unwavering commitment to eradicating TB by 2025, leveraging scientific advancements and community-driven efforts to accelerate progress toward this ambitious goal.
More than 200 innovations shaping India’s fight against TB to be showcased at an exhibition along with over 30 scientific sessions on innovations, lectures, roundtable and panel discussions during the summit.
Former Secretary DHR and DG ICMR Dr Soumya Swaminathan, Joint Secretary DHR Ms Anu Nagar, Sr DDG (Admin) ICMR MS Manisha Saxena and other senior officials and scientists from the Ministry and ICMR also participated in the summit. Among the global participants, Dr. Trevor Mundel, President, Global Health, Gates Foundation and Prof. Guy Marks (the Union) marked their presence at the inaugural event.