The number of malaria cases has seen significant reduction over the past 75 years— from 75 million at the time of independence to 20 lakh in 2023—, highlighting India’s progress towards achieving malaria-free status in next five years, said Union ministry of health and family welfare in a statement on Wednesday. The number of deaths annually in the corresponding period has also come down to 83 from 800,000, it said.
“India’s journey toward a malaria-free future is a story of remarkable transformation and progress. At the time of independence in 1947, malaria was one of the most pressing public health challenges, with an estimated 7.5 crore cases annually and 800,000 deaths. Over the decades, relentless efforts have drastically reduced these numbers by over 97%, with cases declining to just 2 million and deaths plummeting to just 83 by 2023. This historic achievement underscores India’s commitment to eliminating Malaria and improving public health for its citizens,” said the health ministry statement.
No new cases were reported from 122 India districts.
The World Health Organisation (WHO)’s latest World Malaria Report 2024, reported India’s exit from the WHO’s High Burden to High Impact (HBHI) group in 2024 owing to the sharp reduction in numbers, signifying a turning point in India’s fight against malaria.
“These achievements reflect the nation’s robust public health interventions and its vision to achieve malaria-free status by 2030. India’s epidemiological progress is particularly evident in the movement of states to lower disease burden categories,” said the statement.
According to the government data, from the base line year of 2015 to 2023 there has been an 80% drop in new cases— from 11,69,261 to 2,27,564—, with numerous states having transitioned from the higher-burden category to the significantly lower or zero-burden category. In 2015, 10 States and Union territories were classified as high burden, of these, in 2023 only two states (Mizoram and Tripura) remain in the category, whereas four states— Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, and Meghalaya—, have reduced the caseload and moved to category 2.
Also, four other states— Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Madhya Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, and Dadra and Nagar Haveli— have significantly reduced the caseload and moved to category 1 in 2023. In 2015, only 15 states were in category 1, whereas in 2023, 24 states and UTs progressed from high or medium-burden categories to category 1, reporting an annual parasite incidence of less than 1 case per 1,000 population. As of 2023, Ladakh, Lakshadweep and Puducherry are in Category 0 signifying zero indigenous malaria cases. These areas are now eligible for subnational verification of malaria elimination, said the health ministry.
The number of deaths has also fallen from 384 in 2015 to 83 in 2023.
“The foundation of India’s success lies in its comprehensive and multi-pronged strategy. Strengthened surveillance has ensured early detection, timely intervention, and more effective treatment,” said the statement.