The epoch making discovery of Tubercle Bacillus by Robert Koch will always remain a landmark in the fight against dreaded diseases.  Tuberculosis was  the 'captain of the men of death' all over the world in Robert Koch's time. Although this disease was known since times immemorial, its cause was not known. Some thought it to be hereditary, others attributed it to deficiencies in food, hygiene,  housing,  etc.  When  Robert Koch demonstrated that the disease  is caused by tubercle bacillus and is transmitted from person to person by this micro-organism, it not only initiated research to find out drugs which could kill this microbe, but also laid the foundation for evolving preventive measures concentrating on blocking the channels of transmission. It is because of these two measures that tuberculosis has been greatly controlled.

Robert Koch was born on 11th December, 1843 in the village Clausthal in the State of Hanover in Germany and qualified as a doctor from Gottingen University in 1866. His first outstanding  achievement was the discovery  and  isolation  of the micro-organism responsible for Anthrax. In 1881 he attended the first International Medical Congress in London where he was so stimulated on hearing of the world-wide ravages of tuberculosis that he returned determined to find the causative organism of this scourge. 17 years earlier, a French scientist, Villemin, divined but  never  proved  the  possibility of an invisible agent which was responsible for the causation of tuberculosis and its transmission from person  to person and animal to animal. Robert Koch isolated this agent, the microbe, and proved it to be the cause of tuberculosis. He called it Tubercle Bacillus. When the result of his discovery was announced to the world on 24th March, 1882, Robert Koch became an internationally famous figure An institute of Microbiology and Hygiene was established in Berlin and Robert Koch was appointed as its Director.

Koch continued to make many more signal contributions in the field of microbiology. He visited India  in  1886  and was also responsible for the discovery of the  cause  of  Cholera. He travelled  extensively all over  the  world  in search of microbes responsible for other infectious diseases. In 1904 Robert  Koch  retired from the Institute of Infectious  Diseases but continued to be universally honoured. He was elected member of the German Academy  of Sciences and received  Noble Prize for Medicine in 1905 for his work on tuberculosis. He died on 27th May, 1910 as the result of sudden cardiac arrest at the age of 67.

The Centenary of the Discovery of Tubercle Bacillus is being celebrated with the dual object of honouring the great man who discovered this bacillus and also highlighting the need for augmenting the resources and strengthening the health services and developing these in such a manner that control of tuberculosis is achieved  as early as possible.

Indian P & T Department is happy to issue a postage stamp to commemorate this occasion.

Source : Information Folder issued by Indian Posts & Telegraph Department, Government of India