From 2 TB-free gram panchayats in 2023 to 72 by 2025 — that single number from Dharwad district, Karnataka, tells the story of what a focused district-level push can do. Union Consumer Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi shared the milestone on Tuesday, 11 August 2026, after attending a high-level consultation on tuberculosis elimination led by Union Health Minister JP Nadda, bringing together Members of Parliament from Karnataka and Kerala.

What the Nadda consultation set out to do

The meeting, convened by JP Nadda, was framed around converting India's TB fight into a Jan Andolan — a people's movement — in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's directive. Discussions centred on three strategic pillars: indigenous research, AI-based diagnostics, and access to modern treatment protocols for patients. Also present were Union Ministers of State Shobha Karandlaje, Suresh Gopi, and Anupriya Patel, alongside senior officials from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

The consultation is part of a longer policy arc. In 2018, at the Delhi End TB Summit, PM Modi had set India a target of eliminating tuberculosis by 2025 — five years ahead of the global Sustainable Development Goal deadline. The National TB Elimination Programme has since expanded active case-finding through X-ray camps, digital tools, and community mobilisation across high-burden districts.

Dharwad's numbers: screening beyond the target

Joshi's own Lok Sabha constituency put up numbers that stand out. In just 130 days, district health teams organised 161 X-ray camps, screening more than 7,800 people. Between January and July 2026, the district achieved 124 per cent of its screening target, covering 43,840 individuals — well past the assigned goal. The district's current treatment success rate stands at 88 per cent.

Nutritional support is being channelled through the Ni-kshay Mitra scheme, launched nationally in 2022, which mobilises community volunteers and organisations to provide dietary aid to TB patients alongside government-provided medication. Joshi described the commitment as unwavering: 'We are always committed to realising the dream of a Kshaya Mukta Bharat (TB-free India) and to delivering quality healthcare to every citizen of the Dharwad Lok Sabha constituency.'

Technology and community: the twin engines

The broader national strategy India is pursuing integrates AI-powered screening tools with grassroots outreach — a combination designed to catch cases early in districts where health infrastructure has historically been thin. The Dharwad data, with its sharp jump in TB-free panchayats and above-target screening, is being positioned as a replicable model for other high-burden constituencies.

With updated national TB incidence figures expected ahead of the 2025 elimination deadline, the pressure on district-level delivery is only going to sharpen. Dharwad has set a benchmark. The question now is how many districts can match it.