Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi
New Delhi, Dec 15: Experts have emphasised that gender equity and active community involvement are key to tackling the rising burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as diabetes, hypertension, cancer, and obesity in India. NCDs currently account for around 65 per cent of all deaths in the country.
“Community participation has helped improve infrastructure, service delivery, and health awareness, even in remote regions facing multiple challenges. Empowering local leaders and women in planning and monitoring fosters ownership and lasting change,” said Dr. Thomas Keppen, Deputy Director, Department of Health and Family Welfare, Nagaland, during a national-level event. He highlighted the importance of documenting progress regularly to ensure transparency and sustainability in health interventions.
The discussions took place at the annual Evidence2Policy dialogue, organised by The George Institute for Global Health, India, which focused on bridging the "know-do gap" in public health policy implementation.
“Equity in NCD care involves reaching not just women but men and all sections of the community. Bringing healthcare closer to people encourages women to seek care, but strategies are also needed to engage men,” said Dr. Sumit Malhotra, Professor, Centre for Community Medicine, AIIMS, New Delhi. He called for strengthening community health workers, ensuring consistent medicine supply, and improving linkages across healthcare levels to create a more responsive and equitable system.
Officials underscored the role of data-driven decision-making, equity-focused policies, and robust health systems to guarantee universal access without financial hardship.
Under the National Health Mission (NHM), the National Programme for Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases (NP-NCD) has been rolled out to promote prevention, control, and screening of common NCDs. Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, Prataprao Jadhav, shared in Parliament that population-based screening aids early detection, follow-up, and treatment adherence.
He cited NP-NCD portal data showing that as of November 30, a total of 39.79 crore screenings for hypertension, 39.60 crore for diabetes, 33.57 crore for oral cancer, and 15.72 crore for breast cancer have been conducted across health facilities nationwide.
The experts concluded that combining gender equity, community participation, and robust screening programs is critical for reducing the NCD burden and improving health outcomes across India.