India misses leprosy reduction targets with over 90,000 new cases

UPDATE - follow-up to India struggles to curb leprosy transmission: India recorded 91,783 new leprosy cases during 2025-26, which is 41.2 percent higher than the projected 65,000 cases.

Cases And Spread

New infections among children were 91.6 percent higher than expected targets, while the rate of Grade 2 Disability stood at 1.34 per million people against the projected one per million. The national prevalence rate was 0.56 cases per 10,000 population at the end of March 2026. Chhattisgarh recorded the highest prevalence among states at 1.66 cases per 10,000, followed by Jharkhand, Chandigarh, Odisha, and Maharashtra. A total of 114 districts remained above the elimination target, and only 148 districts achieved interruption of transmission compared to the projected 300.

Prevention Efforts

Chandigarh, Delhi, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, and Odisha accounted for 42.5 percent of the 1,945 Grade 2 Disability cases reported in 2025-26. Chandigarh also recorded the highest disability rate at 13.54 per million people. Meanwhile, preventive medicine known as Single-Dose Rifampicin Post-Exposure Prophylaxis was given to 91.2 percent of the 16.94 lakh eligible contacts of patients during the year.

Context

Leprosy is a chronic infectious disease that affects the skin and nerves, but it can be completely cured with early medical treatment. Public health programs use contact tracing and preventive doses to break the chain of infection in high-risk areas.