India joins global movement to raise awareness on Neglected Tropical Diseases
Darpan News Desk IANS, 01 Feb, 2022 12:30 PM
New Delhi, Jan 31 (IANS) Observing the 3rd World Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) Day as a key moment to highlight the global community's commitment to ending these, India joined close to 40 other nations to illuminate iconic landmarks to raise awareness.
This year, India lit up the New Delhi Railway Station in purple and orange hues to mark the occasion.
At a virtual event organised by National Centre for Vector Borne Diseases Control (NCVBDC) to observe World NTD Day, Joint Secretary, Health, Dr Harmeet Singh Grewal, said that the aim of illuminating the iconic New Delhi Railway Station was to generate awareness about NTDs in the visiting public and showcase progress and achievements towards their elimination.
Emphasising on creating a people's movement to eliminate the NTDs, he said: "There is a need for a behavioural change. We must fight it together and engage school children, social workers, activists etc. to create a mass movement to elimination NTDs."
NTDs are caused mostly by a variety of pathogens including viruses, bacteria, parasites, fungi, and toxins which affect over 1.7 billion people globally. They are called 'neglected' because they are almost absent from the global health agenda of the developed countries and are associated with stigma and social exclusion.
Lauding India's efforts towards eliminating these diseases, NCVBDC Director, Dr Tanu Jain, said: "Most people don't know about NTDs because these diseases effect the poor and marginalised communities. We need to elevate messaging about NTDs and highlight the positive, ambitious, and winnable NTD goals by focusing on the NTD elimination target. This would happen through close coordination between all stakeholders."
In Jharkhand, Gujarat, and Karnataka too, iconic landmarks and monuments were illuminated as part of their commitment to eliminate NTDs. In Jharkhand, the renowned Rajendra Circle in Ranchi and Clock Tower in Godda district were lit up in pink and orange colours. The office building of the Department of Health and Family Welfare in Bengaluru was also illuminated to mark the occasion.
In a big relief to commuters, the Delhi Police have started removing barricades along the Tikri and Ghazipur borders, 11 months after these were installed to stop the farmers from Haryana and Uttar Pradesh entering the national capital.
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal lashed out at the corruption, crime and mafia rule in Punjab on Friday. He announced that if his party forms the government in 2022, Punjab will be freed from criminals, the corrupt and inspector raj.
To deal with the ongoing Covid pandemic, India's civil aviation regulator on Friday extended the ban on scheduled international commercial flights till November 30.
Modi reached Rome on Friday morning where he will join other G20 leaders in discussions on global economic and health recovery from the pandemic, sustainable development, and climate change in the first in-person summit of the G20 since the outbreak of the pandemic in 2020.
Three females farmers from Punjab died on Thursday after a speeding truck rammed into them near the protest site at Tikri border, police said. Two other women farmers were also injured in the accident which took place at around 6 a.m.
Ahead of Diwali, the Supreme Court on Thursday said the firecracker ban order needs to be strictly followed. A bench headed by Justice M.R. Shah emphasized that it is not against any particular festival, but it is also essential to protect the right to life. The bench also comprising Justice A. S. Bopanna said: "We do not want to come in the way of enjoyment, but for enjoyment one cannot play with the fundamental right of others."
