Shillong, Nov 28: The Meghalaya State AIDS Control Society has prepared a cabinet memo on the measures to tackle HIV/AIDS in the state.
The move comes as over 10,000 persons, including 500 children, are afflicted with HIV/AIDS.
World AIDS Day will be observed on December 1 to raise awareness about the trend.
The suggestions in the cabinet memorandum were to set up more Opioid Substitution Therapy (OST) centres to treat the addicts and confirmatory sites to confirm the cases.
Addressing a press conference, Dr KL Iawbor, Project Director of Meghalaya AIDS Control Society (MACS), said that out of over 10,000 HIV/AIDS cases, 500 children are infected, and this calls for urgent intervention from all concerned.
Out of over 10,000, the number of affected males is 5308, and the number of females is 5,033. There are four transgender people.
Among the children affected, 263 are females, and 244 are males.
East Jaintia Hills has recorded the maximum HIV/AIDS cases among children, and they are from poor families.
Regarding the connection between drug abuse and HIV/AIDS, out of the affected 10,000 persons, there are around 155 Injecting Drug Users (IDU) who are on Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) medicines, and there are 177 who are Opioid Substitution Therapy (OST) clients on ART medicines.
11 persons under the category of MSM (men having sex with men) are undergoing ART.
“The reason for the spread of the virus is unprotected heterosexual activities”, she said.
Most of the people are also not coming forward for testing,” Dr Iawbor said.
As the state is set to observe World AIDS Day on December 1, Dr Iawbor stressed the need for collective responsibility.
“This virus is very dangerous, and it is the responsibility of every one of us to stop the transmission so that we can make our state and country HIV-free by 2030,” she said.
MACS has conducted awareness programmes and integrated health campaigns, screening 6882 individuals, with 24 testing HIV-positive.
“Eighty-seven percent of the cases were detected during outreach programs targeting high-risk groups and the general population,” Dr Iawbor said.
She added, “Some of them have come voluntarily, and some were referred because they were suspected that they may be having the virus.”
There will be a bikers’ rally and other events on December 1, with Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma as the chief guest, to spread awareness and support those living with HIV/AIDS.
Cabinet ministers and all MLAs of East Khasi Hills, besides nursing and paramedical schools, people living with HIV will also be part of the programs
