Date:01/12/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/12/01/stories/2008120159670600.htm

Karnataka

HIV prevalence rate comes down in State

Staff Correspondent

Belgaum: World AIDS Day is being observed on Monday. The New Delhi-based Centre for Advocacy and Research (CFAR) has said that the HIV prevalence rate has come down from 1.5 per cent in 2003 to 0.86 per cent in 2007.

Quoting CMIS (Computerised Management Information System) data of the Karnataka State AIDS Programme (KSAP), David, spokesman of CFAR, said that there were 1.31 lakh people living with HIV in the State. Of them, 17,387 adults and 1,734 children were on Anti-Retroviral Treatment (ART).

The theme of this year’s World AIDS Day was “Stop AIDS: keep the promise.”

Highlighting the programmes of the Karnataka State AIDS Prevention Society (KSAPS), Mr. David said the society had partnership with 43 targeted interventions that were directly supported by it, and in the remaining districts of the State, the Karnataka Health Promotion Trust and other development partners were implementing the HIV prevention programmes.

The KSAPS had a toll-free telephone service (no. 1097) for people who wished to seek information on HV/AIDS.