New Delhi | India was awarded the Certificate of Elimination of Trachoma as a public health problem by WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus at the 78th World Health Assembly in Geneva, the Union health ministry said on Monday.

"This recognition is a testament to India's sustained efforts in disease elimination, preventive healthcare, and commitment to ensuring health for all," the health ministry said in a post on X.

On October 8, 2024 the World Health Organisation declared that the Government of India has eliminated Trachoma as a public health problem, making it the third country in the region after Nepal and Myanmar to achieve this feat.

Trachoma, a leading cause of infectious blindness, is a chlamydial infection which happens due to lack of hygiene, unclean water supply and can spread by contact with eye, nose, or throat secretions of a person suffering with the disease or indirectly via flies.