People And Their Problems

New Delhi, 10 August 2007

Eradicating AIDS

INDIA COVERS GROUND

By Radhakrishna Rao

In a significant development, data made available by the UNAIDS has pointed out that India is no longer the country with the largest number of HIV/AIDS cases. In fact, it is much better off in comparison to South Africa and countries in the Sub-Saharan region of Africa in fighting the HIV/AIDS infection.

As in other parts of the world, the major cause of infection in India is “unprotected heterosexual intercourse”. Facts and figures provided by the UNAIDS reveal a sharp downward revision in the HIV/AID cases in the country from 5.7 million to 2.5 million in 2006.

However, HIV/AIDS continues to be a major health challenge with only 7 in 100 patients in the country being in a position to access proper and timely treatment for this dreaded disease. According   to the UNAIDS there is an increase in the infection rate among several risk groups such as homosexuals and those who inject drugs.

Additionally, the UNAIDS observed that while HIV prevalence levels among the commercial sex workers in the southern states has been on the decline, the overall occurrence level among this group continues to be quite high on a country-wide basis.

The various factors that hinder efforts to counter the HIV spread among the people include stigma, discrimination and prejudice towards those infected. For example, in the highly literate and  socially progressive state of Kerala, there have been cases of HIV/AIDS infected kids being expelled from schools. In other parts of India, there have been cases of HIV/AIDS patients being denied treatment in hospitals.

On its part the World Health Organisation (WHO) has noted that India’s efforts in tackling HIV/AIDS are significant and should be  scaled up along with the provision of universal access treatment for those who need it.

With a view to bring down the rate of the spread of HIV/AIDS among the population and groups considered “risky”, the third phase of India’s National AIDS Control Program scheduled to run between 2007 and 2012 strives to not only improve voluntary counselling and testing. But also antiretroviral treatment and preventive strategies through its integration with the national health services.

However, in the southern states with men visiting commercial workers increasingly taking to condoms, there has been a decrease in HIV/AIDS infection rate in this “risky group”. That apart, there is growing concern that a large proportion of the women with HIV appear to have acquired the virus from regular partners who were infected during paid sex.

A survey of HIV/AIDS carried out in Aurangabad, Maharashtra considered a high risk zone for the epidemic, has revealed a low level of awareness amongst the doctors and general population. “Maharashtra was considered one of the earliest Indian states to be affected by HIV/AIDS and has a high prevalence of the disease. In mid-2003, 21 per cent  of the country’s reported HIV cases were in Maharashtra .The disease began among groups with a high risk infection such as sex workers and their clients. But it has now spread to the general population” reported the survey.

Meanwhile, the UN Office of Drugs and Crimes has called upon India to effectively link its drug use monitoring system with other HIV surveillance measures with a view to halt the unchecked spread of the pandemic through intravenous drug use. Specially, in the hilly North- eastern region where the epidemic has assumed serious proportions. Thanks to the lawlessness brought about by the insurgency combined with smuggling of drugs from across the border of Myanmar continues to thrive.

According to the UN Office of Drugs and Crime, two of the high prevalence States in India — Manipur and Nagaland in the North-east show features of what epidemiologists call a generalized epidemic with a strong IDU (injectible drug use) and HIV links. The third State in the region, Mizoram is now all set to join the ranks of the above mentioned States.

Surveys carried out by a number of voluntary organizations in these three States reveal that the targeted HIV intervention projects should be strengthened rapidly to achieve a significant risk reduction among a large portion of the injectible drug users in the region. India’s National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) too concurs with these findings. Further, with a view to check the spread of the infection in the potentially high risk areas of the country, NACO had decided to increase the number of sentinel sites by 400, focusing mainly on northern and central states.

However, a  major cause for  concern is the recently noticed trend of the infection spreading its tentacles rapidly and deeper into the rural hinterland of the country .Not surprisingly then, NACO describes  the next five years as “critical” in so far as meeting the challenges of HIV/AIDS are concerned.

As part of the move  to fight AIDS/HIV, three leading Indian institutions, the Pune’s National  AIDS Research Institute(NARI), Bangalore’s  St.John’s Medical College and  Chennai’s YRG have become active partners in an international endeavor  aimed at developing microbicides to fight the infection .While the NARI has joined hands with an American institute to carry out phase trials of an oral HIV drug named Tenofovin, St John’s Medical College and YRG Care are  spearheading trials  to assess the effectiveness of 6 per cent cellulose sulphate on vaginal HIV transmission.

Surveys have also shown that women suffering from HIV were more stigmatised and placed disadvantageously when separated from their near and dear ones. One more disturbing aspect of the HIV/AIDS spread in the country is that “a  small section of high society females through their behavior and lifestyle highlighted by free sex, involving multiple sex partners, get infected without  being aware f it.. Most of them have sex either because they are dead drunk or in a warped state of mind that they are not even aware of who they slept with” says a Bangalore based medical practitioner.

Happily, India’s corporate sector, as part of its social responsibility, has started responding to the pleas to join the war against HIV/AIDS. For this epidemic has a serious implication for the business, industry and economy of the country as a whole.---INFA

(Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)