Efforts to sustain post-kala-azar elimination in India: surveillance, mortality monitoring, and housing support under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana.

India is nearing formal validation for elimination of kala-azar as a public health problem, contingent upon sustaining the elimination threshold for three consecutive years. As incidence declines, the post-elimination phase demands sustained vigilance beyond case counts alone. Residual transmission and preventable mortality may remain undetected, particularly in settings affected by poverty, poor housing and population mobility. Housing support under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana offers a valuable opportunity to reduce structural risk factors by limiting indoor sandfly breeding and human-vector contact in endemic blocks. Continued incentives for frontline health workers and the integration of verbal autopsy into routine surveillance can strengthen mortality monitoring, identify programme gaps, and ensure that elimination gains are sustained and equitable.