Bihar is going to be leprosy free state with the number of such patients declining to 0.89 per cent per 10,000 people by March 31, an official said on Tuesday.
"Bihar has almost become a leprosy-free state with the number of such patients declining to less than one per cent of the population," Sanjay Kumar, Secretary-cum-Executive Officer of State Health Society, Bihar, told reporters.
It was a significant achievement as the figure of leprosy patients in Bihar stood at 1.2 per cent of the population last year, he said.
The number of leprosy patients at present stood at 9440 spread over 10 districts of the state and preventive and curative actions were being taken to further bring down the figure, Secretary-cum-Executive Officer of State Health Society, said.
Adequate MDT drugs have been made available at the government and private hospitals in the state for free distribution among leprosy patients, Kumar said.
Since 1996-97, as many as 15.51 leprosy patients have been cured of the disease through MDT drugs and therapy, he said.