- Why in news
- On 28 August 2026, the Health Ministry reviewed progress on malaria elimination by 2030 with States and 33 high-burden districts. It reported a nearly 80% fall in cases and deaths between 2015 and 2025.
- What it is
- The National Centre for Vector Borne Diseases Control (NCVBDC) runs India's malaria programme under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. India's goal is to eliminate malaria by 2030, in line with the global Sustainable Development Goal target. The approach combines early diagnosis, complete treatment, surveillance and vector control.
- Decline since 2015
- Malaria cases and deaths fell by nearly 80% between 2015 and 2025.
- Zero indigenous cases
- 160 districts reported no indigenous malaria cases during 2022-2025.
- Test, Treat and Track
- The meeting asked States to strengthen the Test, Treat and Track strategy, since delays in diagnosis and treatment contribute to deaths.
- Data quality
- Asymptomatic cases found in mass screening should be reported separately and left out of API and ABER calculations.
- Action plans
- District Action Plans are to be implemented in all 33 high-burden districts, with Village Action Plans in high-burden villages.
Don’t confuse with ABER vs API: ABER (Annual Blood Examination Rate) measures the share of the population tested for malaria in a year. API (Annual Parasite Incidence) measures confirmed cases per 1,000 population.
Don’t confuse with Indigenous vs imported cases: Indigenous cases are caught through local transmission. Imported cases are caught elsewhere and carried in. Zero indigenous cases means local transmission has stopped.
Schemes: 52 Prelims questions since 2013, 10 in Prelims 2026 alone. They test features, the period and who funds it. In Mains, 33 news-triggered questions, mostly GS3.
Why it matters
- Falling cases and deaths show that targeted vector-borne disease control works and supports the SDG 3 goal on ending epidemics.
- Concentration of cases in 33 districts allows focused use of limited resources.
Problems
- Delayed diagnosis and treatment in hard-to-reach and vulnerable areas still cause deaths.
- Poor data quality, such as duplicate testing and mixing asymptomatic screening into ABER, can hide the true situation.
Way forward
- Use District and Village Action Plans with active surveillance and uninterrupted supply of diagnostics and drugs.
- Work with Rural Development, Urban Development and Panchayati Raj bodies, and with Self-Help Groups, on source reduction and water-logging.
Put in your answer
Malaria decline data: Cases and deaths fell nearly 80% in 2015-2025; high-burden districts fell from 155 to 33.
Intersectoral convergence: Health measures alone cannot handle water-logging, source reduction and environmental management, so other departments and PRIs must be involved.
- 2013Mains GS2 · Q15Health-related MDGs and government success in achieving them
- 2018Mains GS2 · Q7Community-level healthcare intervention as prerequisite for Health for All
- 2021Mains GS2 · Q6Primary health structure as precondition for sustainable development
- 2023Prelims Q67Wolbachia method relates to controlling mosquito-borne viral diseases?
- 2023Prelims Q52Anaemia Mukt Bharat statements, including malaria as a non-nutritional cause
UPSC’s own questions that come close to this issue, from our Prelims and Mains banks.
No practice question for this one; the card may still help an answer. Why: Lasting health topic with numbers (80% decline, high-burden districts 155 to 33); question unlikely from a review meeting alone.
Worth revising until Prelims 2028: most news questions come within two years of the event.