India Must Make Diabetes Prevention a National Priority as Rural Burden Grows: Dr Jitendra Singh

Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh has called for making diabetes prevention and preventive healthcare a national priority. He warned that rural India is no longer insulated from the growing diabetes burden.

Speaking at the launch of the RSSDI Diabetes Rural Outreach Digital Portal and VISHWAS Diabetes Awareness Video Library, the Minister said India needs a community-led, technology-enabled and data-driven approach to tackle diabetes.

Dr Jitendra Singh, who is also a Professor of Medicine and Diabetologist, said protecting the health of India’s young population is essential for achieving the vision of Viksit Bharat@2047. He noted that more than 70 per cent of the country’s population is below the age of 40.

Diabetes Challenge Expanding Into Rural India

The Minister said changing lifestyles and food habits have reduced the traditional rural-urban divide in diabetes prevalence.

Early detection, lifestyle modification, timely treatment and long-term follow-up are therefore becoming increasingly important in rural communities.

He stressed that diabetes prevention cannot remain the responsibility of doctors alone. Individuals, families, communities, healthcare professionals and institutions must all play a role.

The Research Society for the Study of Diabetes in India (RSSDI) organised the programme, which brought together specialists and stakeholders from the healthcare sector.

Rural Outreach Programme Expands Community Care

The RSSDI Rural Outreach Programme aims to take diabetes awareness, screening, treatment and follow-up closer to rural communities.

Under the initiative, RSSDI members adopt villages and establish structured systems for preventive care and disease management. The programme has already reached around 30 villages across several states, with further expansion planned.

Dr Jitendra Singh said such initiatives can complement national healthcare programmes by bringing specialist medical knowledge directly to underserved communities.

Digital Portal to Generate Real-World Health Data

The newly launched digital portal will support beneficiary registration, treatment records, follow-up and programme monitoring.

It will also help generate anonymised real-world data from rural populations.

According to the Minister, systematic digital documentation can improve continuity of care while helping researchers understand disease patterns more accurately. Such evidence could support future public health strategies designed specifically for Indian conditions.

He said digital health systems must also respond to India’s linguistic diversity. Platforms should eventually accommodate not only formal languages but also local and colloquial forms of communication used in villages.

VISHWAS Video Library to Strengthen Awareness

The VISHWAS Diabetes Awareness Video Library has been developed to improve public understanding of diabetes, prevention and disease management.

Together with the rural outreach portal, the initiative seeks to combine medical expertise, digital technology and community participation.

Dr Jitendra Singh said advances in healthcare, scientific research and digital innovation must reach people living outside major urban centres.

Minister Calls for Cross-Sector Collaboration

The Minister urged government agencies, universities, technology companies, private organisations and grassroots healthcare workers to work together.

He said modern healthcare increasingly depends on collaboration between medicine, engineering, digital technology and data science.

Describing the changing approach, he said the era of working in isolated sectors was giving way to interdisciplinary cooperation.

Such partnerships, he added, could create scalable models for preventing and managing diabetes and other non-communicable diseases across India.

Health of Young Indians Critical to Viksit Bharat@2047

Dr Jitendra Singh linked preventive healthcare directly with India’s long-term development goals.

With a large young population, he said preventable diseases and chronic health complications could affect productivity and the country’s demographic advantage.

He called for a national effort to protect young Indians through awareness, healthier lifestyles, screening and early intervention.

The Minister expressed hope that RSSDI’s Rural Outreach Programme would grow into a sustainable national model for diabetes and non-communicable disease management.

He said India’s scientific capabilities and digital innovation would have their greatest impact when they reach every village and every citizen.

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Official Source: Press Information Bureau, Government of India, August 16, 2026.

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