Jharkhand ranks third in country in reducing malaria cases: WHO

With a nearly 35% decline in malaria cases in 2019, Jharkhand has finished third in the malaria elimination program in the country. The ranking was awarded on the basis of the ‘World Malaria Report 2020’ prepared by the World Health Organisation (WHO). The survey was conducted based on mathematical projections of the progress made by endemic zones in reducing the malaria burden.
According to the report, a total of 34.96% dip in malaria cases was reported across the state in 2019 in comparison to 2018. The north-eastern state of Meghalaya topped the chart by reducing malaria cases by 59%, followed by Odisha at 40%.
Talking to TOI, state health secretary Nitin Madan Kulkarni said: “This is a result of regular surveillance and the proper implementation of the ‘High Burden to High Impact’ programme initiated by the WHO. The program was implemented across the country under the National Framework of Malaria Elimination, which is being run by the Union government.”
On being asked about the measures taken by the state government to control malaria, Kulkarni said: “Mass fever surveys, distribution of long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs) and regular indoor residual spraying at breeding points in endemic districts helped us achieve the feat and we are sure that malaria will be eliminated by 2030, in tandem with the Union government’s target.”
Notably, 11,071 malaria cases have been detected in the state this year. Whereas, 31,478 cases were reported last year between January and October. This means that the state has witnessed a further decline of 64% in malaria cases.
On being contacted, state malaria officer Dr S N Jha said: “The results are very encouraging and Latehar and Deoghar districts have shown immense improvement with a surveillance rate of more than 10%. We had set a target of covering 47,38,925 persons across 4,098 villages from May to October, out of which more than 70% have been covered. We have distributed over 55 lakh LLINs received from the Centre and more than 20 lakh LLINs are yet to be distributed.”