LEPRA was established in India in 1989 to support the national health programmes in the prevention and control of diseases such as leprosy, tuberculosis, malaria, lymphatic filariasis, HIV/AIDS and blindness. It is a part of the worldwide LEPRA network based in UK which is a member of International Federation of Anti-Leprosy Association (ILEP).

LEPRA focusses its activities in communities that are marginalised or poor, especially women and children, young people, slum populations and migrants. LEPRA’s work in Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar reaches a population of nearly 12 million people.

The strategic areas of LEPRA’s work with the Alliance are:

LEPRA runs HIV-related programmes in Andhra Pradesh and Orissa on the eastern coast of India with funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Global Fund. It also collaborates with Andhra Pradesh State AIDS Control Society (APSACS) and UNICEF. Alliance India and LEPRA together implement the CHAHA programme in Andhra Pradesh.

After ten years of work in the field of HIV/AIDS, LEPRA has been recognised by APSACS as a state-level NGO for carrying out government HIV/AIDS programmes. LEPRA is also a country partner for the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Global AIDS Program (GAP) in India.

LEPRA’s tuberculosis control activities include case detection, service delivery, capacity building, field research, communication and advocacy. It participated in the Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme (RNTCP) and has supported numerous microscopy and sputum collection centres.