The Health Department honoured village elders, volunteers, including NCC cadets, and health workers in 319 panchayats in Vellore, Tiruvannamalai, Ranipet and Tirupattur districts on Thursday for becoming ‘Tuberculosis (TB) Free Villages’ in 2025. Collector P.S. Leela Alex and Vandhana Garg of Vellore and Tiruvannamalai, respectively, honoured these individuals in these districts.

Health officials said that the achievement of TB-free village status is a part of implementation of the National TB Elimination Programme (NTEP) by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. The identification of TB-free villages are being done after COVID-19 pandemic.

“The study found that high population density remains a major reason for the spread of TB in the district, as the infection can spread much faster in densely populated areas. Migration from big cities is another reason for its spread, especially in tribal areas like Jawadhu Hills, which have been less affected by TB,” said P. Ashok, Deputy Director of Health Services (DDHS), TB (Tiruvannamalai).

Of the 319 villages, Tiruvannamalai has the most (157), followed by Vellore and Ranipet (57 villages each) and Tirupattur (48). In 2024, only 30 TB Free Villages were identified in Tiruvannamalai. In the same year (2024), Vellore, Ranipet and Tirupattur districts together had 111 such villages.

Health officials said they identify high-risk villages based on case studies conducted over the past five to ten years in the region. A four-member medical team led by a senior TB treatment supervisor conducts door-to-door inspections in identified villages as part of surveillance against the infection. Subsequently, drug susceptibility testing (DST) for sensitive and resistant varieties of TB infection is done on samples taken in identified villages before declaring the village as TB Free Village.

On an average, one TB case for every 1,000 persons in a village is classified as a TB-free village. Health officials said that the field survey is done between June and September, before the onset of the Northeast monsoon every year.

At present, Tiruvannamalai has the highest number of TB patients (3,000) under six-month treatment, followed by Vellore (1,800 patients), Ranipet (520 patients) and Tirupattur (500 patients).

Health officials said that tipplers, smokers, diabetic patients and persons infected earlier are classified as most prone to TB infection due to low immunity. Workers in stone quarries and crushing units are also vulnerable groups due to inhaling hazardous dust particles.

Health officials said that the increasing number of TB-free villages under the initiative reflects the State’s continued efforts to eliminate tuberculosis through sustained public health measures, active surveillance, and community participation.