Pokhara, April 30

The 45th central meeting of Nepal Leprosy Prevention Association concluded in Pokhara on today.

Speaking at the concluding ceremony, central chairperson of the association Surya Prasad Shrestha rued the tendency among leprosy patients to hide their disease.

“As awareness campaigns have failed to bear fruit, many leprosy patients remain unidentified,” said Shrestha.

Leprosy patients are still found in some Tarai districts, including Kailali, Kanchanpur, Dang, Jhapa, Sunsari, Rupandehi, Kapilvastu and Nawalprasi, while the disease has been eradicated in some other districts.

“Though the disease has largely been stamped out in most of the districts, there are still some leprosy patients in some districts,” said Prakash Wagle of Nepal Leprosy Prevention Association.

Meanwhile, statistics show that around as many as 30,000 persons in the country have been rendered disabled due to the disease so far.