Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Saturday said India’s growing burden of liver diseases and the sharp rise in Type-2 diabetes are part of a larger metabolic crisis, warning that conditions such as fatty liver, hypertension, dyslipidaemia and insulin resistance are closely linked and increasingly affecting younger Indians.
Addressing the third anniversary of the Liver & Metabolic Disease Network (InFLiMeN) at the Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences (ILBS) in New Delhi, he called for a mission-mode national response focused on preventive healthcare, lifestyle changes and mass public awareness.
Singh said metabolic disorders, once associated mainly with middle-aged and elderly populations, are now being diagnosed among young adults and even adolescents, making the issue a national concern rather than just a medical challenge. He said India’s unique genetic predisposition, higher prevalence of central obesity and distinct metabolic profile make its population particularly vulnerable to diabetes, fatty liver disease and cardiovascular ailments, even among people with relatively low Body Mass Index (BMI). Stressing the need for Indian-led research and solutions, he said the country must rely on its own scientific evidence to address these challenges.
The minister noted that the liver, despite being the body’s most resilient and regenerative organ, is increasingly coming under stress due to unhealthy diets, sedentary lifestyles, poor sleep, chronic stress and environmental pollution. He said tackling these preventable risk factors should become a key component of India’s public health strategy.
Praising ILBS for establishing a National Liver Biobank, Singh underlined the need to develop affordable early diagnostic technologies, community-level screening tools and indigenous biomarkers to detect liver diseases before irreversible damage occurs. He said these efforts align with the government’s focus on affordable, accessible and preventive healthcare.
Highlighting India’s expanding biotechnology ecosystem, Genome Mission and large-scale gene sequencing programme, Singh said advances in biotechnology, genomics and artificial intelligence are creating new opportunities for precision medicine by enabling treatments tailored to an individual’s genetic profile, lifestyle and environmental exposure.
He also called for greater collaboration among scientists, doctors, educational institutions, civil society organisations and the media to promote scientifically validated health practices and combat misinformation related to nutrition, obesity and lifestyle diseases. Singh said reducing the burden of diabetes and fatty liver disease is essential to safeguarding the health, productivity and aspirations of India’s young population and achieving the vision of Viksit Bharat 2047.
