Bengaluru : Deputy Chief Minister Dr C N Ashwath Narayan on Sunday said the state government will take steps to include diabetes under the Disability Act.

“The government will take adequate measures to address the concerns of people with Type 1 diabetes, from creating a comprehensive database to awareness creation and coverage of Type 1 under insurance and health schemes,” Narayan said.

Narayan spoke at the launch of the Type 1 Diabetes Foundation India, a pan-India forum of people with Type-1 Diabetes Mellitus (T1DM), a condition in which diabetes occurs as the body fails to produce enough insulin. He also stressed the need to strengthen R&D in the country to develop better treatment methods.

The forum is significant in the light of latest International Diabetes Federation Data (2019) that India has 95,600 children (0-14 years) with Type 1 diabetes. It tops the list of countries with the highest number of cases, followed by the US, Brazil and China.

With no official data available, statistics collated by support groups shows high prevalence of Type 1 diabetes among the southern states, with Tamil Nadu topping the list. Karnataka comes second with about 10,000 children (0-14 years) afflicted with the condition.

The deputy chief minister vowed to conduct a survey to determine the precise number of cases.

Veterans believe the number could be in the excess of three lakhs. “Lack of awareness at all levels — from common people to medical practitioners — has resulted in the delay or lack of diagnosis,” Naveen Kottige, a founding member of the forum, said.

He said multiple injections or the insulin pump is the way to treat the disease.

The medication, however, costs anywhere between Rs 3,000 and Rs 10,000, while very few people can afford the insulin pump.

The conventional insulin provided by the government is not suited for Type 1 diabetes.

Without financial aid, people from low income groups are forced to compromise in giving insulin to their children, resulting in health complications that hinder the child’s growth, Naveen added.

Naveen was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes three decades ago.

While doctors acknowledge considerable progress in monitoring, treating and managing the condition, they say there is no breakthrough in finding a cure.

Pledging to support the cause, Bengaluru South MP Tejasvi Surya said: “Type 1 diabetes patients, especially those with socioeconomic challenges, face a lot of problems.”

Surya said they have made three representations to the government, one was to reduce or eliminate all taxation burdens on insulin taken by Type 1 patients, including on insulin pumps.

They have also urged the government for budgetary allocation to spread awareness about the condition and include Type 1 diabetes under the Disability Act.