New Delhi: The NHRC Tuesday issued notice to the health ministry for claiming that leprosy cases in the country had declined whereas a media report quoting official figures suggests otherwise.

"The government has declared that leprosy is under control, but official data shows that the incidence of the disease is rising with 126,800 new cases reported in 2010-11, 127,295 in 2011-12 and 134,752 in 2012-13," the National Human Rights Commission said in a statement citing a media report.