New Delhi, Feb 25 (IANS): A forum on Tuberculosis - which has former and current parliamentarians as members - has urged political parties to include control of the disease in their election manifestos for the Lok Sabha polls.

The National Forum on TB has written to leading national and regional political parties urging them to include TB control in their manifestos, a release said here Monday.

The forum comprising current and former parliamentarians, policymakers and civil society representatives has been working to raise awareness on TB in India.

Convened by Dalbir Singh of the Congress, the forum was launched in 2013 with the aim to highlight and discuss the critical challenges in TB control in India.

"TB is one of India's gravest public health challenges and we have to combat it with enormous strategic vision, commitment and greater coordination between all stakeholders," Dalbir Singh said.

Often termed India's silent killer, TB kills one Indian every two minutes. India bears the highest burden of TB in the world, with 2.3 million new cases recorded in 2011.

MP Tarun Vijay said: "TB control has to be a collective endeavour, cutting across party lines. A healthy India is a priority for all of us."