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THANE: As many as 48 lakh residents from the rural and urban areas of Thane district will be screened for leprosy cases as part of a special drive to weed out the disease from the region by 2027, officials informed.
The drive was announced Thursday following a study that showed around 711 cases of leprosy were detected and registered in Thane district in the last nine months between April and December 2024.Activists have now raised questions about the efficacy of the department that is targeting to eradicate the disease by 2027.
“We have launched a 14-day Leprosy Detection Campaign in Thane district covering both rural and urban divisions. A team of around 2500 groups of experts and health workers will fan across the district over the next two weeks and identify areas where cases of leprosy are high. Our recent review revealed 711 cases across the district and we are now aiming at a zero-case target in the next two years,” informed Dr Parge, Health Officer at the Thane Zilla Parishad.
The campaign, flagged off from Friday, will identify and diagnose suspected leprosy cases through extensive search teams, ensuring that the patients suspected to have contracted the disease receive immediate treatment, it said. The objective is to identify undiagnosed leprosy cases, initiate timely treatment, and break the chain of infection.
A press statement by the Thane Zilla Parishad said leprosy is an infectious disease caused by bacteria and primarily manifests through pale or reddish numb patches on the skin, weakness in the limbs, thickening of the earlobes, and painful skin lesions. It can affect individuals of all ages and, if left untreated, can lead to deformities.
“Many patients often ignore the initial symptoms and subsequently delay medical intervention as the infection sets in silently without causing any visible pain,” said experts.
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