New Delhi, Feb 28: India has made a significant stride in healthcare since 2014, with particular emphasis on quality and affordability for all, said Union Health Minister JP Nadda on Friday.

Speaking at the 9th National Summit on good and replicable practices and innovation in the public healthcare system in Odisha's Puri, Nadda said: “The Union Government’s focus is on ensuring quality and affordable healthcare services for the people”.

He said this citing the work done on Ayushman Arogya Mandir under the National Health Mission (NHM) which “strengthened the foundation of primary healthcare in the overall healthcare pyramid”.

He also hailed the government’s efforts in reducing the Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR) as well as the Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) in the country.

“The decline of MMR in India is double that of the global decline which highlights the effort taken in strengthening the healthcare system from the grassroots level. The IMR and under-5 mortality rate has also seen a noteworthy downfall,” Nadda said.

Further, the Union Health Minister also highlighted the decline in malaria cases as well as tuberculosis incidence in the country, which were also acknowledged by the World Health Organization (WHO). According to the WHO Global TB Report 2024, India has witnessed a noteworthy 17.7 per cent decline in TB incidence from 2015 to 2023 -- a rate that is over twice the global average decline of 8.3 per cent.

Nadda noted that despite the setback experienced during Covid-19, “India has not diluted its TB eradication target”. He added that the ongoing 100-day TB elimination campaign, spanning 455 districts across 33 states, has detected five lakh TB patients already. Notably, India aims to eliminate TB in 2025, five years ahead of the global target.

Nadda also emphasised the need for bringing lifestyle changes to ward off the threat of non-communicable diseases like diabetes, hypertension, and cancers.

The Union Minister credited the ASHA workers, SHOs, and other grassroots-level health workers for the achievements made in the healthcare sector.

The 2-day summit will showcase and document various best practices and innovations adopted by States and UTs for addressing their public health challenges.

--IANS

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