UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Union Health Minister Shri J.P. Nadda Launches JOSH Teams to Accelerate Youth-Led TB Elimination Efforts

Q1. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. In community screening for TB, a person flagged by AI-assisted chest X-ray must undergo a confirmatory diagnostic test before treatment is started.
  2. Chest radiography is a sensitive screening tool for TB but lacks the specificity needed to confirm a diagnosis.
  • A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
  • B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
  • C. Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
  • D. Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Q2. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. Rapid molecular tests allow a patient with rifampicin-resistant TB to be placed on a suitable regimen sooner than culture-based drug-susceptibility testing allows.
  2. MDR-TB is caused by bacteria that do not respond to rifampicin and isoniazid, the two most effective first-line TB drugs.
  • A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
  • B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
  • C. Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
  • D. Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Q3. With reference to global targets for tuberculosis, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. Sustainable Development Goal target 3.3 calls for ending the TB epidemic by 2030, alongside other communicable-disease epidemics.
  2. The WHO End TB Strategy milestone of halving the global TB incidence rate by 2025 from its 2015 level was achieved, as per WHO's 2025 global report.
  3. The End TB Strategy's 2030 targets are expressed as percentage reductions in TB deaths and incidence rate relative to 2015, not as zero cases.
  • A. 1 and 3 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 3
  • C. 1 and 2 only
  • D. 2 and 3 only

Q4. A country reports the following for a given year: its estimated TB incidence rate per 100,000 population is lower than a decade earlier; its TB treatment coverage is 92%; and its treatment success rate is 90%. Which of the following inferences can validly be drawn from the above?

  1. Roughly 8% of the people estimated to have fallen ill with TB that year were not notified and treated.
  2. About 90% of all the people who fell ill with TB in the country that year were successfully treated.
  3. The absolute number of people falling ill with TB each year in the country must be lower than a decade earlier.
  4. The treatment coverage figure carries uncertainty, because its denominator is an estimate rather than a direct count.
  • A. 3 and 4 only
  • B. 1, 2, 3 and 4
  • C. 1 and 4 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 4 only

Q5. Consider the following assertion: Providing nutritional support to people with TB can be justified as a disease-control measure and not merely as a welfare measure. Which of the statements given below support/supports the above assertion?

  1. Undernutrition is a risk factor that accounts for a substantial share of new TB cases worldwide.
  2. Nutritional support under Ni-kshay Poshan Yojana is paid through Direct Benefit Transfer, which reduces leakages in delivery.
  3. Ni-kshay Mitras include corporates, NGOs and institutions, so patient support draws on resources beyond the government budget.
  • A. 1, 2 and 3
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1 and 2 only
  • D. 1 only