New Delhi, Aug 26 (PTI) Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya took charge as the chairperson of Stop TB Partnership Board on Thursday.

The minister will hold the responsibility until 2024, according to a Health Ministry statement.

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He will lead the efforts of the Stop TB Partnership Secretariat, partners and the TB community at large towards reaching the UN TB targets by 2022, a milestone moment in the effort to end TB by 2030, the statement said.

"I am honoured to take the Chair of the Stop TB Partnership Board and thus secure continuation of the commitment to global efforts to end this devastating disease worldwide by 2030. I look forward to working with the Stop TB Partnership Board and Secretariat in leading the efforts to end TB," the statement quoted Mandaviya as having said.

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He reiterated Prime Minister Narendra Modi's commitment to end TB in the country by 2025 on the occasion, the statement said.

Mandaviya also expressed his gratitude to the outgoing chairperson and his predecessor in the ministry Harsh Vardhan and appreciated the initiatives taken by the partnership under his guidance, it stated.

The Stop TB Partnership also welcomed the incoming Board Vice-Chair Austin Arinze Obiefuna. He will take over as the Board Vice-Chair from 1 January 2022 for a period of three years, the statement said.

Executive Director of the Stop TB Partnership Lucica Ditiu, acknowledging India's efforts to eliminate TB, said that the new leadership's experience and passion will be instrumental in taking the organisation forward in the next three years, according to the statement.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)