India continued to build on its recent success in controlling malaria, with the number of annual deaths going below 10,000 for the first time ever in 2018, a 41% reduction over 2017, according to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) World Malaria Report 2019 released on Wednesday.
Malaria cases in the country declined by 28% in 2018 compared to 2017; there was a 24% reduction in cases between 2016 and 2017.
There were an estimated 6,737,000 malaria cases and 9,620 deaths in India in 2018, down from 9,348,000 cases and 16,310 deaths in 2017, according to the report. Since 2000, India has halved the number of malaria cases and deaths by at least two-thirds and is pushing to become malaria-free by 2030.
Experts say the decline in India is projected to continue over the next few years because of improved access to free prevention, testing and treatment services.
Read more of this positive development in a report by Sanchita Sharma published in Hindustan Times... (Link given below)
