Five million people in India infected with HIV/Aids in 2005

Mumbai, June 11 (UNI) At present, approximately 40.3 million people in India live with HIV/Aids while around 2.3 million of them were under the age of 15 years, Dr I S Gilada, an HIV/Aids expert said.

He was speaking yesterday at a seminar on ''Two Decades of HIV epidemic in India: What have we gained? What have we lost ?'' held at the Jaslok Hospital. Ms Priya Dutt, MP was the guest of honour.

Quoting the UN statistics, Dr Gilada said, ''In 2005 close to five million were infected with HIV of which seven lakh were below 15 years. These figures show how staggering the problem is.'' He further said,'' Everyday 14,000 contract HIV. In 2005, 3.1 million people died in Asia. An estimated 5.7 million Indians infected by the end of 2006 will be overtaking 5.5 million estimated in South Africa. While in South Africa 18.8 per cent adults were living with HIV, in India the figure was 0.9 per cent, where most of the infections are caused by unprotected heterosexual sex.'' The groups most affected are sexworkers, injecting drug users, migrants, truck drivers, receipients of blood products. Surveillence data shows that housewives are going to be the likely carriers.

The detection of first cases of AIDS completes 25 years in the world and 20 years in India. It is opportune time to take stock of the situation vis-a-vis HIV/Aids and its medico-socio-economic impact on the human race across the globe as well as in India.'' In India AIDS has been described as a ''man made, government neglected and socially sponsored calamity'' and has a disturbing trend with more than 2,50,000 deaths in 2005, one every two minutes,'' he said, adding without major investments in prevention/ care, higher annual death tolls are expected by 2010.

Dr Gilada further said, ''Whenever any epidemic comes, we always think and talk about what we lost and what is its negative impact.

Rarely do we think about its positive impact and rarely we thank the epidemic. Our vast list of gains include, sanity of morality, sexuality and sensuality, blood and blood products safety, lab and hospital safety/ universal precautions, clean needle for injection drug users, exposing indifference of medical professionals, just to name a few.'' ''What we lose are millions of lives- 30 millions globally-1.2 million in India. We have lost due importance to other life threatening conditions/ diseases because of attention to AIDS.'' Speaking on the occasion Dr F E Udwadia said,'' When our foreign reserves are over 136 billion US dollars and we prepaid the ADB loans do we need the World Bank loan or external aid to stop AIDS and to control TB? Can't we manage our health affairs and save millions of our people from getting sick and dying for want of timely and proper medications? '' ''If Bill Gates can support 200 million US dollars for India's AIDS program why can not our business giants match it for our own people? This needs a serious debate. High political will to contain TB and HIV is needed beyond World TB Day and Aids Day and be transgressed into realistic action plan. Let Health and Aids issues become part of election manifestoes.'' The Chief Guest of Honour Ms Priya Dutt said, ''We need to work from the grassroot levels. The positive sign is that attitude has changed against carriers. We cannot sweep things under the carpet, problems cannot be ignored any more. They have to be addressed. I pray to my friends in the Parliament to take action before this disease takes over the country and plays havoc. This fight will continue for a very long time.'' At the event the physicians who diagnosed the first AIDS cases in India were honoured by Ms Dutt. They are Dr R D Lele, Consultant Physician, Dr N H Wadia, Consultant Neurophysician and Dr Sunil Parekh Consultant Hematologist.

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