Nearly 15 lakh people in India were found to have tuberculosis (TB) without any of its usual signs, the Union Health Ministry said this week. The figure raises a question many are now asking: can you have TB without a persistent cough and fever? As per research, you can. Between 7 December, 2024 and 8 November, 2026, the TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan screened more than 25 crore people and found 48.64 lakh new TB cases. Of these, 14.97 lakh people (about 31%) had no TB symptoms when they were picked up.
\n\nThe Union Health Ministry shared these numbers on 12-13 November 2026, alongside the WHO Global Tuberculosis Report 2026. That report says India's TB death rate fell from 28 per lakh people in 2015 to 18 per lakh in 2025, a 38% drop.
\n\nAlso Read: India’s TB Deaths Fall 38% Since 2015, Outpacing Global Decline of 35%, Says Health Ministry
\n\nMost of these silent cases were found because the campaign did not wait for people to feel sick. Health teams ran over 11 crore chest X-rays and more than 3 crore NAAT (molecular) tests during this period (News Age). Many of the 15 lakh people would not have walked into…
Original source: https://www.timesnownews.com/lifestyle
