The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has done a lot of humanitarian work all over the world, especially in India. Bill Gates recently visited slums in Odisha and talked about the development and implementation of AI in farming. Now the foundation is partnering with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and working with the private sector to release affordable treatment for sickle cell anemia. The treatment will not only help individuals in India but will also be available for patients worldwide. 

Gates also praised India for handling the COVID-19 vaccine debacle by vaccinating the nation and helping more than 150 countries by providing them with the vaccine. “India was also a very big source of Covid vaccines for the world, and the foundation also partnered with Indian companies in this effort," said Bill Gates. 

In India’s G20, the Prime Minister launched the National Sickle Cell Anemia Elimination Mission which aims to make India sickle cell anemia-free by 2047. Tribal and backward communities are the most vulnerable and targeted when it comes to sickle cell anaemia. This mission focuses on these communities and helps them fight the disease and provide all the treatment and care required. Here are some key features of the mission:

  • Screening and testing of approximately 70 million people under the age of 40 in the next 3 years.  
  • Spreading awareness and educating the medical staff and citizens about the disease and how to fight it. 
  • Providing Sickle Cell Genetic Status Cards to beneficiaries so that the disease cannot be spread to others. 
  • Distribution of digital cards to Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) beneficiaries.

It is an ambitious project but with the partnership of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Indian Government, the current scene can be changed and sickle cell anemia can be eradicated from the nation.