The Chandigarh State AIDS Control Society organised an awareness programme on HIV/AIDS at DT Mall, IT Park, Manimajra on Wednesday.
The objective of the programme was to create awareness about the disease and its possible causes, prevention of the disease mitigation of impact of HIV/AIDS in the work place, care and support of workers infected and affected by it and elimination of stigma and discrimination attached with HIV.
Project director, Chandigarh State AIDS Control Society (SACS), Dr Vanita Gupta said, “To achieve an AIDS-free Chandigarh, we are reaching out to the hardest-hit communities every day. Various awareness programmes are organised to sensitise young men and women with the motive to make them understand the risk of HIV infection and to educate them about how HIV spreads and to motivate them to get tested for HIV to find out their status and if they are living with HIV then to get themselves treated.”
She said, “In India estimated 20.9 lakh people are living with HIV. The main route of transmission in India is heterosexual 88.2 %, blood and blood products 1%, from infected syringes and needles 1.7%, homosexuals 1.5%, parent to child 5%.”
Dr Gupta said the declining trends of HIV positivity from 0.25% to 0.23% among pregnant women was an indication of the declining trends of the HIV infection in Chandigarh.Consultant (CSM), Chandigarh SACS, Dr Jitender Dahiya said about 150 people, including employees, visitors, young men and women, were sensitised about HIV/AIDS. He said adolescents were becoming infected with HIV because they have neither the knowledge nor the excess to services to protect themselves.
{{/usCountry}}Dr Gupta said the declining trends of HIV positivity from 0.25% to 0.23% among pregnant women was an indication of the declining trends of the HIV infection in Chandigarh.Consultant (CSM), Chandigarh SACS, Dr Jitender Dahiya said about 150 people, including employees, visitors, young men and women, were sensitised about HIV/AIDS. He said adolescents were becoming infected with HIV because they have neither the knowledge nor the excess to services to protect themselves.
{{/usCountry}}“We at Chandigarh State AIDS Control Society are trying to make young people educated about HIV/AIDS and are providing them excess to prevention, treatment, care and support.”During the awareness programme quiz was organised on HIV/AIDS where people actively participated. In the end an open session was conducted where queries related to health, HIV/AIDS were answered by experts.