Committee Headed by Azad Discusses AIDS Control Programme

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Committee Headed by Azad Discusses AIDS Control Programme

by VR Sreeraman on August 27, 2010 at 3:30 PM

The Parliamentary Consultative Committee of Ministry of Health & Family Welfare

met in Delhi today to discuss National AIDS Control Programme Phase-III

(2007-12).

Addressing the Members the Union Minister for Health & Family Welfare, Shri

Ghulam Nabi Azad said that a significant chunk of the estimated populations of

high risk groups and populations of truckers and migrants have been reached

through targeted interventions which have been successful in bringing down the

prevalence of HIV in the southern states.

The Minister informed that a total of 143.8 lakh clients including 61.2 lakh

expecting mothers were counseled in the Integrated Counseling and Testing

Centres (ICDCs) across the country during 2009-10. In order to increase

awareness NACO launched Red Ribbon Express on World AIDS Day 1st December 2009.

This is the largest mass mobilization campaign on HIV AIDS in the world covering

152 stations in 22 states.

The Red Ribbon Express is currently working its way through Madhya Pradesh

before moving on to Uttar Pradesh, Uttrakhand, Punjab, Haryana and Jammu &

Kashmir before returning to Delhi on 1st December 2010. For people living with

HIV AIDS, 64 new anti-retroviral therapy (ART) centres have been established in

last one year. 89,000 new patients are receiving free ART treatment.

21 New Community Care Centre and 367 Link ART Centres have been established in

the last one year. Generic anti-retroviral drugs by Indian Companies have

brought down the cost of first line treatment from US $ 800 per year, a few year

back, to US $ 10 a month at present.

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