What is leprosy and can it kill?
Leprosy rarely enters ordinary conversation in modern times – with most references to the disease being restricted to history classes and the Bible.
Leprosy was far more widespread in the Middle Ages but declined from the 1400s and the final case of leprosy in the UK was reported in 1798.
But the reality is leprosy has continued to wreak havoc in many parts of the world with more than 200,000 people infected globally. Thousands with bacterial disease are abandoned by their countries’ governments, who often provide limited resources to the colonies, and instead rely on help from NGOs.
In India, where 60 per cent of leprosy cases exist, the authorities have stepped up efforts to eradicate the disease.
But the country is still using hundreds of so-called leper colonies to house people with the bacterial infection.
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Tahirpur is a government-appointed leprosy colony on the outskirts of north Delhi and is thought to be India’s largest out of more than 800 colonies in the country.
Those living here are burdened by cramped conditions, open sewers and piles of rubbish. Yet, it’s also one of the more developed leper colonies out there with concrete huts, water pumps and working toilets.
There are also several leper-focused hospitals, including the Leprosy Mission Hospital, one of 14 hospitals run by The Leprosy Mission Trust India. The NGO Hope Worldwide also runs a smaller facility called The Village of HOPE, providing thousands with wound treatment each year.
One resident, Muhammad Shafiq Siddique came to the colony aged 16. He’s now in his 70s.
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He found out he was being dumped in the community after coming home one day to find his bedding out on the street.
He previously told the BBC: “My family didn’t accept me and the village people didn’t want me there. I was very hurt so I had to go.”
India this year launched its National Strategic Plan and Roadmap for Leprosy. It aims to achieve zero transmission of leprosy by 2027, three years ahead of the next Sustainable Development Goal.
In a number of other leper colonies around the world, victims of the disease find themselves completely abandoned by the local authorities and left to their own devices, which for many is a dire prospect.
In Nigeria, where there are 64 leper settlements, one facility receives just $240 a month from the central government.
Oke Igbala, dubbed “hill of salvation” sits in the country’s Kwara state. Abigail Olaiya was left with no choice but to go to the settlement three decades ago after her mother and father died and her siblings “neglected her”.
It was first founded by Canadian missionaries in 1943 who managed it until the 1970s.
Now it’s run by the Evangelical Church Winning All mission. The ECWA gives the facility, which is in disrepair, a grant of $4,800 to $9,600 per year.
Residents here have to pay for their medication, which most can’t afford.
She added: “Sometimes, I only make enough money to transport me to and from Ilorin, Omu-Aran and other neighbouring towns.
“When I get back home, I start to look for what to eat. Other times, I have just 50 ($0.12) or 100 naira ($0.25) left after deducting the transport fare. On such days, I buy bread.”
Britain’s final leper colony
Britain’s last leper hospital or “leper colony” was only closed down in 1984 after being sold at a low price to a housing association.
The Homes of St Giles were previously used to treat victims of the disease from around the British empire.
Describing the elusive colony in 1921, a journalist at the Times wrote: “The building known as the Homes of St Giles looks like a cottage hospital. It stands among trees a few yards from an English lane. There is nothing to indicate that it is the only remaining leper colony in Great Britain. Indeed, its very existence is unsuspected by most people.”
India this year launched its National Strategic Plan and Roadmap for Leprosy. It aims to achieve zero transmission of leprosy by 2027, three years ahead of the next Sustainable Development Goal.
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