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Public Health, Nutrition & Epidemics18 Verified Concepts & Facts
India's Target to Eliminate Hepatitis B and C by 2030: NVHCP, Diagnostics & Viral Therapy
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India has aligned its national public health objectives with the World Health Organization's (WHO) Global Health Sector Strategy on Viral Hepatitis, committing to eliminate Hepatitis B and C as major public health threats by 2030. Under international benchmarks, elimination is defined as achieving a ninety percent reduction in new chronic infections alongside a sixty-five percent reduction in viral hepatitis-related mortality compared to 2015 baselines. To operationalize this strategic objective, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare launched the National Viral Hepatitis Control Program (NVHCP) in July 2018, integrating screening, viral load diagnostics, and therapeutic care across all levels of the public healthcare delivery system.
The clinical and epidemiological management of these two blood-borne pathogens requires distinct biomedical strategies based on viral structure and disease transmission. Hepatitis B is caused by an enveloped, partially double-stranded DNA virus belonging to the Hepadnaviridae family, transmitted primarily via vertical mother-to-child transmission, unprotected sexual exposure, and contaminated needles. Because chronic Hepatitis B cannot be fully eradicated from infected hepatocytes due to covalently closed circular DNA (cccDNA), prevention relies on the Hepatitis B birth-dose vaccine administered within twenty-four hours of delivery, followed by the pentavalent vaccine series under the Universal Immunization Programme (UIP). In contrast, Hepatitis C is caused by an enveloped, single-stranded positive-sense RNA virus of the Flaviviridae family. Although no vaccine exists for Hepatitis C, it is curable using pan-genotypic Direct-Acting Antivirals (DAAs), which achieve cure rates exceeding ninety-five percent with a twelve-week oral course.
Executing India's elimination roadmap involves scaling decentralized diagnostics, ensuring blood transfusion safety, and expanding community outreach through Ayushman Arogya Mandirs (formerly Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres). Nucleic Acid Testing (NAT) has been systematically expanded to reduce window-period transmission risks during blood banking, while free distribution of generic DAAs like Sofosbuvir and Daclatasvir has eliminated financial barriers to cure. By integrating viral hepatitis screening into antenatal care packages and high-risk population interventions, the national program seeks to avert end-stage complications including liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma.