Even with sustained medical advancements and government initiatives to eliminate TB, tuberculosis continues to be among India's top killers. Experts have identified air pollution, undernutrition, social stigma, and lack of treatment adherence as major obstacles to the enduring TB burden.

Key Highlights
India's TB burden continues to increase

• India detected 2.8 million new TB cases in 2022, a 13% jump from pre-pandemic rates.

• TB is responsible for nearly 340,000 deaths every year in India—almost 930 deaths every day.

Disease severity worsens with air pollution and undernutrition

• Researchers explain that air pollution can make latent TB become active by hampering lung functions and compromising immunity.

• Malnutrition reduces the natural defenses of the body, so infection and aggravation of TB are more probable.

Stigma and delayed diagnosis exacerbate results

• Fear of discrimination by society makes most patients postpone seeking treatment.

• Late treatment means TB has reached later stages, which are more difficult to treat and have a higher chance of spreading.

Neurologic complications and non-adherence to treatment

• Tuberculous meningitis is a potentially fatal complication of TB that can result in permanent damage to the brain.

• Experts claim interruptions in treatment cause drug-resistant strains of TB, which raise the death risk.

Quotes from Leaders or Officials
Dr Akshay Budhraja, HOD, senior consultant, respiratory and sleep medicine, Aakash Healthcare:
"Indians have latent TB. Air pollution destroys lung function and converts this into active disease, increasing bad outcomes even on treatment."Dr Neetu Jain, senior consultant, pulmonology, PSRI Hospital:
"Malnutrition makes the immune system weak and susceptible. TB spreads more quickly when families are unable to afford healthy food."Dr Manav Manchanda, director and head, respiratory medicine, Asian Hospital:
"Social stigma makes the patient postpone medical treatment. That renders TB treatment more difficult and the disease potentially more fatal."Dr Praveen Gupta, principal director and head of neurology, Fortis Hospital:
"Nervous system TB is perilous. In the absence of early treatment, it causes irreparable complications such as strokes and brain injury."Dr Sushrut Ganpule, consultant, chest medicine, Jupiter Hospital, Pune
“When TB treatment isn’t completed, drug resistance develops. This makes TB more lethal and harder to cure.”Experts unanimously call for early screening, improved nutrition, increased public awareness, and sustained government interventions to reduce TB cases. Addressing social and environmental risk factors alongside improving healthcare access is essential to meeting India’s TB elimination targets.