Dist admn adopts 100 TB patients

Starting 2025 on a positive note, the district administration has announced to adopt 1,700 TB patients across the district under the National Tuberculosis Eradication Programme.

The Health and Family Welfare Department, Punjab, has launched a 100-day special campaign under the TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyan. The campaign will be taken to the village level to eradicate TB and create awareness regarding its early detection and treatment.

Amritsar Deputy Commissioner Sakshi Sawhney said under the campaign, 1,700 TB patients have been adopted by the district administration for providing food and treatment support, out of which 100 TB patients have been adopted by district administration officials and all their treatment expenses will be borne by these officials. Ten patients have been adopted by the Deputy Commissioner.

“A record of every TB patient will be kept and every needy patient will be given proper diet as per the advice of experts. It has been made clear that patients who are not taking proper diet due to financial constraints should be provided with food every month by the district administration with the support of various commercial establishments, the District Red Cross Society and religious institutions and donors,” she said.

Sahni said the aim is to make Amritsar the first district in the country to eliminate TB. “For this, we will invest whatever time, resources, money and energy is required,” she stressed. She instructed officials to map over 5,000 patients present in the district according to their residence so that keeping in mind their areas, the duty of ASHA workers or other employees can be assigned to provide medicine and food to such patients.

She said such a system and means would be established as every patient can be sent a message on his mobile twice daily to take medicine and apart from this, when his food or medicine runs out, he should be given a helpline number, which they can call to get help. She said for this, identification of TB patients among the prisoners in jail and their treatment will be ensured.

The district administration has issued a helpline number 0183-2422155 and mobile number 90564-54988 for TB patients. In the appeal to residents, she said those who want to adopt TB patients, they can contact the helpline and can also help by registering on the Nikshay portal.