Overview

• India received the Certificate of Elimination of Trachoma as a Public Health Problem at the 78th World Health Assembly in May 2025.
• In his June 29 Mann Ki Baat broadcast, Modi announced the trachoma-free status and lauded the country’s frontline health workforce.
• Since 2019, the National Programme for Control of Blindness and Visual Impairment has sustained continuous surveillance and conducted a trichiasis survey across 200 endemic districts from 2021 to 2024.
• The Swachh Bharat Abhiyan and Jal Jeevan Mission helped tackle root causes by improving rural sanitation and delivering tap water to households.
• India is now the third country in Southeast Asia to eliminate trachoma, reflecting decades of investment in eye care and public health infrastructure.