With no funds for nutritional support, TB patients remain a harried lot

On one side India is committed to ending tuberculosis (TB) by 2025, on the other, Punjab has not received funds under the nutritional support programme for TB patients.

For the past two and a half years, tuberculosis patients across the state have failed to receive money for nutritional support given to them every month owing to a stalemate with the Centre over the release of National Health Mission funds totalling Rs 1,750 crore.

The Centre gives Rs 500 as social support fund keeping in view the role of nutrition in curing any disease. The money is given under Nikshay Poshan Yojana. The amount is directly transferred into the beneficiary’s account.

The state has nearly 57,000 patients suffering from TB with nearly 10,000, the highest, from Ludhiana and the discontinuation of National Health Mission funds by the Union Government has cast its shadow on them. The district is yet to receive Rs 5 crore.

Dr Ashish Chawla, Ludhiana District TB Officer, said patients had not received funds since June 2022. “The scheme was started on 2018 and funds used to come twice a year but have stopped coming after NHM funds were discontinued by the Centre,” Dr Chawla said.

Subhash, a TB patient from Ludhiana said as such the amount given is meagre and secondly they were not getting it every month. “Initially it was credited once in two months and then it was credited twice a year which too had stopped now,” he added.

Another patient who wished not to disclose her name said she was hopeful for buying fruits and milk from the money but she never received it.

All the TB patients, whether from government or private sector are eligible for this fund and must be registered on the Nikshay portal.