Health Watch | Leprosy-free by 2027: Maharashtra faces its fears

Maharashtra’s decision to make leprosy a notifiable disease—requiring all healthcare providers to report every case within two weeks—marks a long overdue shift in how India confronts one of its persistent public health problems. The state, a known hotspot, now aims for a leprosy-free Maharashtra by 2027.

Despite India officially reaching elimination levels in 2005, leprosy never truly disappeared. “In 2005, India met the leprosy elimination criteria of under one case for every 10,000 people nationally. But around a fourth of the 800 districts in the country remain high-burden,” says Dr Ashok Agarwal, CEO of NLR India, a non-profit that supports leprosy victims and works towards its elimination. He says nearly 100,000 new cases are reported each year, but that only reflects those detected in the public system—many more are diagnosed in private clinics or never come forward due to stigma.

The disease is preventable and easily treatable, becoming non-infectious after the first dose of multi-drug therapy. Yet an NLR India assessment found 79 per cent of families and community members hold negative attitudes, while almost half the patients report poor mental wellbeing. Overcrowding, poor nutrition and hygiene fuel transmission, whose symptoms—often just a pale, numb skin patch—may appear only after 2-5 years.

Experts say India can eliminate leprosy with a multi-year strategy centred on early detection, contact tracing and community awareness—crucial steps in a nation of 1.4 billion where silence, more than science, keeps the disease alive.