It is for the first time that an FIR has been filed against a doctor for failing to notify a tuberculosis case. Not notifying TB was made a punishable offence last year, and this happens to be the first FIR against a doctor for non-compliance. The FIR was filed against a doctor in Ahmedabad.

Additionally, 336 notices have been issued to private sector doctors across Gujarat for not notifying TB cases. In Madhya Pradesh, 15 notices have been served in Bhopal and 8 in Indore.

India has more than a million ‘missing’ cases every year that are not notified and most remain either undiagnosed or inadequately diagnosed and treated in the private sector. In order to trace these missing cases, the private sector is required to report TB cases.

TB was made mandatorily notifiable in 2012; however, there were no disciplinary provisions for non-compliance. Since 2012, more than 0.7 million TB patients have been notified from the private sector. The efforts and contribution from Maharashtra and Gujarat are worth mentioning, which implemented 80% of signed ‘partnership schemes’ nationwide, and contributed to more than 25% of all private notifications.