India TB Caucus launched to accelerate TB elimination

The meeting was jointly organized by International Union Against TB and Lung Disease (The Union) and supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), The Global TB Caucus, Indian Association of Parliamentarians for Population and Development (IAPPD), Center for Legislative Research and Advocacy (CLRA), Global Coalition Against TB (GCAT), Global Health Strategies (GHS), REACH and Aequitas.

Attending the launch were Chief Guest, Prof. P J Kurien, Deputy Chairman - Rajya Sabha; Senator Lisa Singh, Member of Parliament (MP), Australia; Dr. Nguyen Van Tien, MP, Vietnam; Viplove Thakur, MP; Dr. Kirit P Solanki, MP, Lok Sabha; Dr. BN Goud, MP, Lok Sabha; Majeed Memon, MP, Rajya Sabha; Avinash Khanna, Ex-MP, Rajya Sabha along with Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, Director General, ICMR; AK Jha, Economics Advisor, MoHFW; Dalbir Singh, President, GCAT; Sarah Kirk, Regional Director, Asia Pacific TB Caucus.

Goals of India TB Caucus To advocate for increased resources for TB prevention & care in India. Raise the issue of TB within their own political networks and ensure it remains among urgent political priorities. Sensitize the family and communities of those affected by TB, address the stigma and ensure accessibility to TB diagnosis and treatment at primary stage to every patient. The members signed the India TB Caucus Declaration, pledging support for accelerating progress towards a TB-Free India.

Prof. P J Kurien, Deputy Chairman - Rajya Sabha agreed to be a patron of the India TB Caucus and  announced the name of four co-chairs Viplove Thakur; Dr. Kirit P Solanki; Dr. BN Goud; Majeed Memon.

Welcoming the guests to the launch of India TB Caucus, Viplove Thakur, MP, Rajya Sabha said, “Today, we are here to talk about an issue that needs urgent attention, especially from all the political representatives. It is very unfortunate that TB continues to be one of India’s greatest public health challenges. While Government of India is making efforts to address TB, all of us have a role to play. As we form the Cacus today, we commit to work collectively and individually in our capacity to end TB in India.”

Majeed Memon, MP, Rajya Sabha, co-chair India TB Caucus, reiterated that given India’s high burden of TB, there is need for accelerated efforts make India TB-Free.

Dr. Gaoud, MP, Lok Sabha as co - chair committed all his efforts to end TB and said “TB afffects most people and gets least attention as compared to other problems that affect lesser number of people”.

Dr. Kirit P Solanki, MP, Lok Sabha emphasized on the need for more funds and dedicated support sytem for TB patients and their families. He called upon Parliamnetarians to leverage their efforts and goodwill for the cause.

Senator Lisa Singh, MP, Australia, stated, “TB is the world’s biggest infectious killer and 1.8 million people died of this disease in 2015. TB has killed as many people every year as HIV & Malaria combined, yet it is a neglected disease. It is heartening to see how the Indian Government is pulling out all the stops to put an end to the TB epidemic in the country.”

Mark White, USAID/India Mission Director, stated: “We must all work together to successfully turn the tide on TB. The TB Caucus will help to galvanize support for political representatives across the country to champion a TB-free India.” With support from USAID, The Union played a vital role in the establishment of the Global TB Caucus and will serve as the secretariat for the India TB Caucus. Kavita Ayyagari, Project Director, Challenge TB, The Union commented, “Parliamentarians have a wide sphere of influence, and The Union, in association with partners, is helping toincrease awareness and commitements to End TB in India.”

The India TB Caucus is part of the Global TB Caucus, which is a unique network of political representatives with support in more than 130 countries.

Source: Pharmabiz.com