New Delhi, Dec 31 (IANS): The Covid-19 ‘pandemic’ not only proved to be detrimental to health and economy but also affected gains made in the fight against many traditional diseases like malaria and tuberculosis in India. While some progress has been made, and the Covid-19 ‘pandemic’ is also officially over, the scare around it has not gone.

Covid continues to occupy mindspace and as the new variant springs up, it takes the centre-stage with increased media attention and also some resource allocation. Fresh surge in Covid cases are majorly driven by JN.1.

India, on Saturday, reported 743 new Covid-19 cases and seven deaths while the active tally dropped to 3,997 from 4,091 the previous day. Meanwhile, the country reportedly logged 178 cases of coronavirus JN.1 sub-variant so far till Friday.

“Each and every news in connection with Covid-19 says as a ritual, ‘We need not panic, but we should be cautious’, this itself creates undue panic among people! And moreover it is so confusing,” Dr Ishwar Gilada, Consultant in Infectious Diseases Unison Medicare and Research Centre, Mumbai, told IANS.

“The presence of JN.1 has not increased demand for oxygen, beds, ICU beds or ventilators. In fact that may cause collateral damage and affect other health conditions adversely, as was during the thick of pandemic times,” he added.

The doctor pointed out that “tuberculosis (TB) alone killed an additional 495,000 people in 2021, equivalent to the number of people who died of Covid-19 in three years. Similarly there were a lot of collateral damages during 2020-2022.”

So, where does India stand in terms of our traditional infectious diseases? Going by data, Covid pandemic has significantly disrupted the progress, making it insufficient to meet targets.

The latest World Health Organization (WHO) report on TB shows that India continues to carry the highest burden in the world. This is when India has committed to be TB-free by 2025, five years ahead of the global target of 2030.

The Global Tuberculosis Report 2023 said that around 87 per cent of the world's total cases in 2022 emerged from 30 high TB-burden countries, with two-third of the cases registered from eight countries in which India ranked the highest (27 per cent).

Similarly, India aims to be malaria-free by 2027 and to eliminate the disease by 2030. But in 2022, India topped countries in the South-East Asia Region for the most number of malaria cases (66 per cent) and deaths, revealed the 2023 World malaria report. About 94 per cent of deaths were in India and Indonesia, as per the report.

However, this is not to say that no progress has been made in the country to counter the diseases.

“Traditional infectious diseases like malaria and tuberculosis haven't vanished, but their shadows have shortened considerably. In India, malaria cases have nearly halved since 2010, while tuberculosis prevalence has dipped by over 25 per cent, thanks to sustained public health efforts,” Dr. Dipu TS, Associate Professor, Division of Infectious Diseases, Amrita Hospital, Kochi, told IANS.

Dr Dipu credited the decline in TB cases to initiatives like DOTS, promoting early detection and treatment completion; and improved sanitation and awareness campaigns in pushing back malaria.

According to the Union Health Ministry, India’s efforts have resulted in the reduction of TB incidence by 16 per cent from 2015 to 2022, almost double the pace at which global TB incidence is declining, which is 8.7 per cent.

TB mortality has also reduced by 18 per cent during the same period in India, the ministry has said.

The country has made tremendous progress in its malaria elimination journey, observing a reduction of nearly 66 per cent in its official malaria burden between 2018 and 2022.

"India witnessed 85.1 per cent decline in malaria cases and 83.36 per cent decline in deaths during 2015-2022," Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, said early this year.

Compared to 2019, India was the only high-burden, high-impact country in the SE Asia region to report a decline in malaria cases in 2020, he added.

“The battle isn't won. Drug-resistant strains and inequities in access to healthcare remain significant hurdles. Neglecting these diseases now risks a resurgence that could be even more challenging to overcome. It's crucial to maintain vigilance and resources on this front,” Dr. Dipu said.