The national TB control programme is faced with a serious problem with the Health Ministry dragging its feet on the issue of entrusting the task of procurement of drugs and other supplies for the programme to an independent, professional agency. The dilly-dallying attitude of the Ministry means that there can be no early end to the impasse that has been created after the World Bank supsended its credit line for the programme earlier this year in protest against the failure of the government to entrust the job of procurement of supplies to an independent body.