In response to a request from the Director of Medical and Health Services and the Mission Director of the National Health Mission, Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli (DNH), a committee was constituted by the Indian Council of Medical Research. This committee carried out an assessment of the leprosy epidemiological situation from 27th February to 1st March 2017 to inform targeted recommendations for strengthening leprosy control activities in the region. The assessment included a review of past evaluations (2013 and 2014), case sheet audits, health system functioning, and field examinations across rural and tribal communities. Despite intense leprosy control activities in DNH, certain important gaps in programme functioning were observed such as under-diagnosis of Grade 2 Disability, inconsistent new case detection rates, and a disproportionately high burden among the Warli tribal community. Overall, 82% of cases were single-lesion, and many patients presented late-stage disease, with clustering within households. The results underscore the need for improved diagnostic accuracy, targeted tribal outreach, and standardization of surveillance metrics. Environmental and migratory factors may also sustain transmission and require further epidemiological study. Customized interventions, enhanced training for frontline health workers and regular monitoring are essential to interrupt transmission and reduce hidden prevalence in endemic pockets; and the rapid decline in leprosy prevalence from 6.77 in 2015-16 to <1 case per 10,000 population by January-2023 is surprising and merits further investigation.
BT - Indian Journal of Leprosy DA - 12/2025 LA - ENG M3 - Article N2 -In response to a request from the Director of Medical and Health Services and the Mission Director of the National Health Mission, Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli (DNH), a committee was constituted by the Indian Council of Medical Research. This committee carried out an assessment of the leprosy epidemiological situation from 27th February to 1st March 2017 to inform targeted recommendations for strengthening leprosy control activities in the region. The assessment included a review of past evaluations (2013 and 2014), case sheet audits, health system functioning, and field examinations across rural and tribal communities. Despite intense leprosy control activities in DNH, certain important gaps in programme functioning were observed such as under-diagnosis of Grade 2 Disability, inconsistent new case detection rates, and a disproportionately high burden among the Warli tribal community. Overall, 82% of cases were single-lesion, and many patients presented late-stage disease, with clustering within households. The results underscore the need for improved diagnostic accuracy, targeted tribal outreach, and standardization of surveillance metrics. Environmental and migratory factors may also sustain transmission and require further epidemiological study. Customized interventions, enhanced training for frontline health workers and regular monitoring are essential to interrupt transmission and reduce hidden prevalence in endemic pockets; and the rapid decline in leprosy prevalence from 6.77 in 2015-16 to <1 case per 10,000 population by January-2023 is surprising and merits further investigation.
PB - Hind Kusht Nivaran Sangh, New Delhi PY - 2025 SP - 339 EP - 349 T2 - Indian Journal of Leprosy TI - Leprosy Situation in Dadra & Nagar Haveli in 2017 and its Relevance for 2025 UR - https://www.ijl.org.in/published-articles/29122025083755/Gupte_et_al_Oct_Dec_2025.pdf ER -