4-State network to tackle HIV

By Divya Sreedharan

BANGALORE, NOV. 29. This World Aids Day on December 1 will see Karnataka interact with Andhra Pradesh (AP), Maharashtra and Manipur to jointly tackle "their high prevalence of HIV".

The Chief Minister, Mr. S.M. Krishna, will speak about this interaction on November 30, during his video conference with the Chief Ministers of the afore-mentioned states and the Union Health Minister, Mr. C.P. Thakur.

Karnataka and AP stand second in terms of the numbers of HIV cases. Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu have the highest numbers.

Men have increasingly proved more vulnerable to the virus. This year, the UNAIDS theme for HIV/AIDS prevention and awareness is "Men Make A Difference". The Commissioner for Health and Family Welfare, Mr. Sanjay Kaul (also project director of the Karnataka State AIDS Prevention Society (KSAPS), says that Union Government and UNAIDS estimates reckon that Karnataka has two to three lakh persons infected with HIV. The country is estimated to have 3.5 million HIV-positive cases.

Karnataka has 641 reported cases of AIDS, Mr. Kaul told The Hindu. "Of this, there are 540 men and 101 women, hence the male plays an important role in preventing the spread of AIDS," he explains.

Widening reach: Moreover, the AIDS virus is no longer confined to high-risk groups such as truck drivers and commercial sex workers (CSWs). A fact observed by NGOs such as SPAD (Society for People's Action for Development) which works with truckers in Bangalore City. Mr. Augustine C. Kaunds from SPAD points out that "anyone is vulnerable to the virus".

Which is why KSAPS (which works with 14 NGOs, including SPAD) and the AIDS Forum Karnataka (AFK), is moving from "targeted intervention" to "generalised intervention". "Surveillance of three ANC (Ante Natal Clinics) reveals that one per cent of the State's sexually active adult population -- persons between the ages of 18 and 45 years -- could be HIV positive," Mr. Kaul says.

The latest KSAPS annual three-month sentinel surveillance was conducted between August 1 and October 31 at eight voluntary blood testing centres, four blood testing centres and three ANC (Ante Natal Care) institutions spread across the State. They have detected 7,500 HIV-positive cases.

But even Government officials know that surveillance has to be extended. "We plan to recommend that there be some kind of a surveillance structure in every district in the State," Mr. Kaul says.

Dubious distinction: Bangalore, says Mr. Kaul, no longer has an "alarming AIDS situation". That dubious tribute belongs to the Dakshina Kannada region, Udupi, Hubli-Dharwad, Bellary and Bijapur. "Dakshina Kannada is vulnerable because it is a coastal region and is, therefore, more prone to outside contact. Places like Bijapur and Dharwad are exposed because of the inter-State highway used by high-risk groups such as truck drivers," he explains.

"Though Bangalore had the first reported cases of AIDS, the situation has improved probably because of the better awareness, increased media coverage (of causes of HIV/AIDS), and education of the public," Mr. Kaul surmises. He believes that the vernacular press has a role to play in bringing down AIDS in the other regions of the State.

At present, KSAPS is carrying out Phase II of a World Bank-aided project. "This year we have around Rs. 10 crores for our work. We have asked for an additional Rs. 5 crores this year," Mr. Kaul says.

UNAIDS theme: On December 1, the KSAPS NGO network plans a `jaatha' (procession) and a `yakshagana' on the UNAIDS theme. The programme will be performed en route to the Bangalore Medical College (BMC) and later repeated at the BMC Nursing School Auditorium.

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