Mumbai, Aug 24, 2024: Lok Seva Sangam (LSS), a Mumbai-based NGO working to eradicate leprosy and tuberculosis, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Bajaj Finserv, through its social impact program, to launch a new community-based project aimed at detecting and treating leprosy in underserved wards of Mumbai.
The MOU, effective from 10th July 2024, will span a period of 36 months and focus on three key wards in Mumbai: L Ward, M-East Ward, and M-West Ward. These areas, with a combined population of approximately 2.3 million people (Census2011) and approx. 5.2 Lac people will benefit from extensive door-to-door screening campaigns and mobile skin clinics designed to identify and treat leprosy cases early.
Under the project titled "Leprosy Detection and Treatment at Community Level in Wards of Mumbai," LSS will implement a comprehensive approach that includes: Extensive Survey and Active Case Detection; Patient Treatment and Follow-up; Capacity building of public healthcare and community systems on Leprosy detection; and Employment Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities (PwDs).
To mark the start of this important project, a Continuous Medical Education (CME) event was held recently, bringing together over 50 private and government doctors.
India continues to face significant challenges with leprosy, reporting 103,819 new cases in 2022-23 alone. Of these, 7,859 (6.87%) were children, while deformities caused by leprosy have decreased over the years, there were still 2,363 cases in 2022-23, demonstrating that leprosy remains a pressing public health concern.
The partnership between LSS and Bajaj Finserv CSR is expected to empower local communities and contribute to NLEP’s broader goal of eliminating leprosy transmission by 2027.
