The annual meet (Yuva Hejje-2008) essentially provided the youth peer educators a platform for networking and sharing of experience. This was mainly to accelerate the involvement of youth in HIV reduction programmes. The annual meet is the initiative mostly of the peer educators who have formed their own associations. Thus the Yuva Hejje brought together the 9 Associations formed by the peer educators inorder to act collectively and to pave way for an eventual federation of these associations. A total of 300 young people participated in this annual meet. This annual meet had educative exhibition stalls, educative games, cultural presentation by the youth peer educators themselves.

India is one of the largest and most populated countries in the world, with over one billion inhabitants. Of this number, it’s estimated that around 2.4 million Indians are currently living with HIV. ¹

HIV emerged later in India than it did in many other countries. Infection rates soared throughout the 1990s, and today the epidemic affects all sectors of Indian society, not just the groups – such as sex workers and truck drivers – with which it was originally associated.

In a country where poverty, illiteracy and poor health are rife, the spread of HIV presents a daunting challenge.

CLICK HERE TO VISIT THE AVERT INDIA WEBSITE AND TO READ MORE ABOUT HIV IN INDIA.

Nongovernmental organizations and a health insurance company on Wednesday launched an insurance program for people living with HIV in the Indian state of Karnataka, The Hindu reports. The program — the first of its kind in India — was launched by Population Services International, the Karnataka Network for Positive People and the insurance company Star Health and Allied Insurance (The Hindu, 8/14). The program also is supported by USAID.

More than 250 HIV-positive people will be included in the project’s initial stages, according to the Hindustan Times (Sharma, Hindustan Times, 8/13). The group health plan will provide coverage worth 30,000 rupees — or about $700 — for HIV-positive people, including 15,000 rupees — or about $350 — for hospitalization at the onset of AIDS and $350 for treatment. The premium of 1,500 rupees — or about $30 — will be subsidized by up to 50% by the groups involved in the program, according to the Indian Express.

The program was introduced in the districts of Bangalore, Bellary, Kolar, Mangalore, Mysore and Udupi. Hospitals have been told about the program and instructed not to turn away people living with HIV, according to C.P. Udayachandran, assistant vice president at Star Health and Allied. Although India’s National AIDS Control Organisation is not directly involved in the program, NACO has started speaking with insurance companies at the national level to develop a nationwide plan for people living with HIV and their families, the Express reports. NACO Director Sujatha Rao said, “We are trying to work on an insurance policy that will provide a package of services. We want to include even healthy people and families of those with HIV.” According to Rao, a “scheme for only [HIV-positive people] would mean higher premiums” (Indian Express, 8/14).

The program is a “milestone in the fight against the discrimination of people living with HIV,” Asha Ramaiah, general secretary of the Karnataka network, said, adding, “This health insurance will allow us to get the best possible treatment and change the perception that we are a financial burden on our families.” Rao added that the program is a “first step to breaking down financial barriers of HIV-positive people in accessing treatment” (Hindustan Times, 8/13).

Reprinted with kind permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.

Bangalore played host to the Red Ribbon Express on 23rd July 2008.  SPAD occupied one of their carriages to eduacate and discuss issues about HIV & AIDS in India.  We have a slideshow of images from the day that you can view in our photo gallery.

Press Release:

It takes a strong army and multi-pronged attack to ward off a determined enemy. And an enemy such as HIV/AIDS requires all the awareness and prevention ammunition that can be summoned. The Rajiv Gandhi Foundation has conceived a unique and powerful idea to combat HIV/AIDS: a train that will traverse over 9,000 km a year, cover 180 districts/halt stations, and hold programmes and activities in 43,200 villages! This is the The Red Ribbon Express (RRE) Project, which will be implemented by the National AIDS Control Organization (NACO). This national campaign will promote a multi-sectoral effort to bring HIV/AIDS into the mainstream of overall socio-economic development rather than regarding it as a medical/public health issue.

The Red Ribbon Express or train itself will comprise seven coaches, equipped with: educational material, primarily on HIV/AIDS, interactive touch screens and 3-D models, PPTCT services in the context of RCH II, HIV-TB co-infection, an LCD projector and platform for folk performances, counseling cabins and two doctors’ cabins for providing counselling and syndromic treatment for STI and RTI cases, an office, dining area and pantry.

· The RRE Project will be flagged off from Delhi by the Smt. Sonia Gandhi, Hon’ble Chairperson, UPA & Chairperson, at 10 AM on World AIDS Day, which is 1st December 2007. Focusing on youth groups, women self-help group members, adolescents/student community from schools and colleges, PRI members, youth in uniformed services and out-of-school/non-student youth, particularly in the rural areas, the Project aims to:

· Spread information regarding primary prevention services

· Develop an understanding of the disease, to reduce stigma and discrimination against people with AIDS

· Enhance people’s knowledge about preventive measures, health habits and lifestyle.

]]> http://www.spad.in/archives/94/feed 0 http://www.spad.in/archives/78 http://www.spad.in/archives/78#comments Fri, 27 Jun 2008 06:34:09 +0000 admin http://www.spad.in/?p=78 Milan project team organise a training session for doctors in Bangalore to educate them about HIV/AIDS.

Photos available in the gallery.

Click here to read the article.

Photos gallery now available.

India’s AIDS epidemic has been fuelled mainly by unprotected sex. Estimates are that more than 2.5 million Indians are living with HIV. Women are particularly at risk of having the virus passed to them by their husbands or regular partners, who have been infected through paid sex. In some parts of India, injected drugs also play a significant role in the spread of HIV.

Click here to view Jim Goldberg’s 8 minute documentary film. (it may take some time to load)