Govt sets target to eliminate Malaria by 2030
Recently, the central government has set a target of eradicating malaria from India by the year 2030.
On the occasion of World Malaria Day on 25 April, the Union Health Minister said that the government will soon launch a massive campaign to eliminate tuberculosis and malaria.
According to the Union Minister, India has registered a decline of about 86 percent in malaria cases since 2015. Also, there has been a decline of about 79 percent in malaria deaths in the same period.
However, despite the above achievements, India accounted for about 83 per cent of the total malaria cases and about 82 per cent of deaths in the South-East Asia region as per the WHO’s World Malaria Report 2021.
Malaria
- Malaria is a deadly mosquito-borne blood disease caused by the Plasmodium parasite.
- It is spread through the bite of infected female Anopheles mosquitoes.
- There are 5 parasitic species responsible for malaria in humans.
- Of these, 2 species – P. falciparum (African continent) and P. Vivax (outside sub-Saharan Africa) are the most dangerous.
Measures taken to eradicate Malaria
- The National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme (NVBDCP): Under this, efforts are being made to eradicate three diseases (Malaria, Filariasis and Kala-azar).
- The National Malaria Eradication Framework (2016-2030) has been announced.
- The National Malaria Eradication Strategic Plan (2017-2022) has been prepared.
- The “Malaria Eradication Research Alliance (MERA)-India” program is being run to end malaria by
- The World Health Organization has launched the High Burden to High Impact (HIBAI) initiative.
Source – The Hindu
