Shimla DC reviews work done under TB-free panchayat drive

Shimla, July 24

An awareness programme will be organised in every panchayat of Shimla on the World Tuberculosis Day on March 24 every year to achieve the target of making the district TB-free.

While presiding over the District Tuberculosis Forum and District Tuberculosis Comorbidity and District Tuberculosis Committee meeting here today, Deputy Commissioner Anupam Kashyap said efforts were being made at the panchayat level under the TB-Free Panchayat Abhiyan.

He directed the Health Department, NGOs and administration to work relentlessly to achieve the target. He said awareness about this disease should be spread in government offices and private hospitals of the district should be roped in for the campaign.

Health officials informed him that there were 1,080 TB cases in the district. Of this, 88.2 per cent patients had been treated, while 60 patients had died. Two CBNOT machines had been provided in the district, at Jubbal and Nerwa, besides NOT facility had been started in every block of the district.

Under the TB-free Gram Panchayat Abhiyan, it will be mandatory to get at least 30 people out of a population of 1,000 people tested for TB in a year and not more than one test should be positive in a year. A TB-free panchayat will be awarded a certificate at the district level.

The JapiGo’s project, TB Implementation Framework Agreement (TIFA), will be started in the district from August 1.

Under this, the chemist of every medical store in the district would have to upload the data of the person buying cough syrup on the TB Mukt Himachal app. Then after seven days, an automated call would be made to that person to check if he is cured or else he would have to get tested for TB.