India has cut its estimated tuberculosis deaths by 38% since 2015, slightly ahead of the global decline of 35%, according to the World Health Organization’s Global Tuberculosis Report 2026, released on 12 November.
The death rate fell from 28 to 18 per lakh population between 2015 and 2025, the Union Health Ministry said. The report also puts India’s treatment success rate for drug-susceptible TB at 94%.
The global picture
WHO estimates about 10.6 million people fell ill with TB in 2025, and about 1.13 million died. India still carries roughly one-fourth of all cases, the highest share of any country.
Worldwide, the fall in new cases has been slow. Incidence dropped only about 14% between 2015 and 2025, far short of the 50% milestone set under WHO’s End TB Strategy. Deaths have fallen faster, which is where India’s numbers stand out.
WHO’s South-East Asia office said on social media that “India is making a significant contribution” to lower TB mortality in the region.
The screening push behind the numbers
The government links the progress to its TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan, run from 7 December 2024 to 8 November 2026. Under it:
- over 25 crore people were screened for TB
- more than 11 crore chest X-rays and over 3 crore molecular (NAAT) tests were done
- 48.64 lakh new cases were found, including 14.97 lakh people with no symptoms
- 67,933 panchayats were declared TB-free in 2025
Finding people without symptoms matters because they can spread the infection without knowing it. Early detection also makes treatment shorter and cheaper. The ministry says about 96% of the programme’s funding now comes from domestic resources.
What is still missing
The report does not include fresh estimates of how many new TB cases India has each year. A national prevalence survey run by ICMR-NIRT in 2025 is still under technical discussion with WHO, and an updated India profile is expected after that. Until then, the incidence trend remains an open question.
The national target of ending TB as a public health problem also remains some distance away, despite the faster fall in deaths.
Health note: A cough lasting more than two weeks, fever, night sweats or weight loss can be signs of TB. Please consult a doctor; testing and treatment are free at government health centres.
Reporting based on PIB and Asianet Newsable.
Featured image: Ajay Kumar Chaurasiya, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
