Govt approves Rs 1,040 crore boost for TB patient nutritional support

Health Minister JP Nadda on Monday announced that the government has approved an additional allocation of Rs 1,040 crore for nutritional support for tuberculosis (TB) patients under the Ni-Kshay Poshan Yojana (NPY).

In an official statement, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said that it has decided to increase the monthly nutritional support under NPY to Rs 1,000 per patient from the existing Rs 500.

The government has also decided to permit expansion of the scope and coverage of the Ni-Kshay Mitra initiative under the Pradhan Mantri TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyan (PMTBMBA) to include the family members (household contacts) of TB patients.

It was also decided to introduce energy-dense nutrition supplementation (EDNS) for all underweight TB patients or those with a body mass index (BMI) less than 18.5 kg/m² at the time of diagnosis.

“All TB patients will now receive nutritional support of Rs 3,000 to Rs 6,000 under NPY. While enhancement of NPY support will benefit 25 lakh TB patients in a year, the introduction of EDNS would cover approximately 12 lakh underweight patients,” the ministry said in a statement.

EDNS would be provided to all eligible patients for the first two months of their treatment.

Further, the health ministry has approved the demand to expand the scope of nutritional support to household contacts of TB patients.

“In addition to TB patients, Ni-Kshay Mitras will adopt the household contacts of TB patients for the distribution of food baskets with a view to improving the immunity of the family members of TB patients,” the ministry said.

In his statement on social media app X, Nadda said that this move will cost the central government approximately an additional Rs 1,040 crore, to be shared between the Centre and states on a 60:40 basis.

“This would lead to a significant reduction in out-of-pocket expenses (OOPE) incurred by TB patients and their families,” he added.