Non-Communicable Diseases Now Cause 66% of Deaths in India — NCD Policy Response Analysis
Summary
Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) — cardiovascular disease, cancer, chronic respiratory disease, and diabetes — now account for approximately 66% of all deaths in India, up from 37% in 1990, according to WHO and ICMR data synthesised in recent UPSC-relevant health analysis.
●India carries the world's largest absolute burden of diabetes (approx. 101 million cases) and the second-largest burden of cardiovascular deaths.
●The National Programme for Prevention and Control of NCDs (NP-NCD), operating under Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres (HWCs), is the primary delivery mechanism, but coverage gaps, workforce constraints, and health behaviour factors continue to drive avoidable NCD mortality.
Health & Medical Science
This sub-topic has appeared in 7 UPSC Prelims questions.
Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) are defined by WHO as diseases that are not passed from person to person, are of long duration, and result from a combination of genetic, physiological, environmental, and behavioural factors.
●The four major NCDs — cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), cancers, chronic respiratory diseases, and diabetes — account for approximately 74% of global deaths (WHO 2023) and approximately 66% of deaths in India (up from 37% in 1990). India is home to an estimated 101 million diabetics — the largest absolute number globally (IDF Diabetes Atlas 2021). The National Programme for Prevention and Control of NCDs (NP-NCD) was launched under the National Health Mission; it integrates screening and management at Health and Wellness Centres (HWCs), of which 1.7 lakh have been operationalised under Ayushman Bharat.
●Risk factors: tobacco use, physical inactivity, harmful alcohol use, unhealthy diet, and air pollution (PM2.5 — India's ambient air pollution burden is among the world's highest).
The epidemiological transition — from communicable to non-communicable disease dominance — is structurally linked to India's nutritional and demographic transition, and its reversal requires action outside the health sector (food regulation, urban planning, tobacco taxation).
Factual Pointers
Practice · 2 questions
Consider the following statements about Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) in India:
1. Non-Communicable Diseases account for approximately 66% of all deaths in India, up from 37% in 1990.
2. India has the world's second-largest absolute number of diabetics after China.
3. The National Programme for Prevention and Control of NCDs (NP-NCD) delivers services through Health and Wellness Centres under the Ayushman Bharat framework.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Consider the following statements about India's tobacco regulation and NCD risk factors:
1. The Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) was enacted in 2003.
2. India has the world's largest absolute number of tobacco users.
3. Air pollution (PM2.5 exposure) is recognised by WHO as one of the major modifiable risk factors for Non-Communicable Diseases.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
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