05-25-2005, 09:47 PM
Pioneer
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>HIV cases down by half </b>
Yoga Rangatia/ New Delhi
For the first time in two decades, the number of new cases of HIV infection has registered a sharp decline in India. Fresh cases of HIV infection have come down by half in 2004 as compared to the previous year, a sign that the galloping rate at which HIV was spreading in India is now slowing down.
The deceleration follows sustained campaigning to spread awareness among the people about HIV and AIDS and methods of preventing infection by this deadly disease.
According to National AIDS Control Organisation HIV sentinel surveillance estimates, 28,000 people could have contacted the infection in 2003-04. This is about half of the new cases of HIV estimated in the previous year after the peak of 61,000 new infections in 2002. The total number of people infected in the country are estimated to be 5.134 million.
The figure released by the Government on Wednesday also counters propaganda by international donors and NGOs that India is much worse off as compared to South Africa, which has the world's highest number of HIV positive people.
The latest to kick up the controversy over Indian estimates was Dr. Richard Feachem, Executive Director of the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and malaria, who said that in terms of number of HIV infections, India had overtaken South Africa. At 5.13 million HIV infections, Indian numbers are less than that of South Africa, where an estimated number of 5.3 million people are infected. Earlier, actor-turned-HIV/AIDS activist Richard Gere had cast doubts on the Indian Government's HIV/AIDS numbers.
The Government in its rebuttal has said that the Indian statistical model to estimate HIV positive follows the guidelines laid down by UNAIDS and World Health Organization. An independent expert group on HIV estimates, which includes international experts has further validated the data.
"We have validated and re-validated our data, and are confident that there is lesser prevalence of HIV/AIDS in India than South Africa. India remains a low-prevalent country," Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss contested Dr Feachem's claim. Officials point out that the comparison between the two countries is untenable.
"In South Africa, 21.5 per cent of the population are HIV positive, while in India it is less than one per cent of the population. The comparison is misleading and counter-productive," asserted NACO chief Dr SY Quraishi. The World Health Organization, too, has thrown its lot with India on the AIDS statistics controversy. "India follows guidelines laid by the WHO, and data is validated by an independent expert group. Why do you (Indian Press) give importance to statements (of people) who have no evidence," asked Dr Salim J Habayeb, WHO representative to India. Dr Feachem later clarified in a letter to the Health Ministry that his comment is based on his "personal belief."
The turnabout is thanks to Tamil Nadu's decade-long efforts in arresting the trend of HIV prevalence, pushing it down to less than one per cent of the population in the last three years. In Tamil Nadu, the number of positive people in general population dropped from 1.25 per cent in 2002 to 0.75 per cent in 2003 and 0.5 per cent in 2004. Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka are yet to show results.
The 2004 round was conducted in 478 sentinel sites all over the country, out of which 258 sites were antenatal clinics, 151 clinics treating sexually-transmitted disease, 19 sites captured HIV infection among injecting drug users, 11 sites among homosexual men and 39 sites among female sex workers. The Institute for Research in Medical Statistics and National Institute of Health and Family Welfare sifted through the data, while an expert group in HIV estimates validated the final estimates.
The Health Ministry has assessed that states of Assam, Bihar, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa and Uttranchal are highly vulnerable to the epidemic considering their population, migration and poor health infrastructure.
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I don't trust Govt figures. Not much is done to control HIV/AID in India and they are saying sudden drop in new cases. How this is possible?
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>HIV cases down by half </b>
Yoga Rangatia/ New Delhi
For the first time in two decades, the number of new cases of HIV infection has registered a sharp decline in India. Fresh cases of HIV infection have come down by half in 2004 as compared to the previous year, a sign that the galloping rate at which HIV was spreading in India is now slowing down.
The deceleration follows sustained campaigning to spread awareness among the people about HIV and AIDS and methods of preventing infection by this deadly disease.
According to National AIDS Control Organisation HIV sentinel surveillance estimates, 28,000 people could have contacted the infection in 2003-04. This is about half of the new cases of HIV estimated in the previous year after the peak of 61,000 new infections in 2002. The total number of people infected in the country are estimated to be 5.134 million.
The figure released by the Government on Wednesday also counters propaganda by international donors and NGOs that India is much worse off as compared to South Africa, which has the world's highest number of HIV positive people.
The latest to kick up the controversy over Indian estimates was Dr. Richard Feachem, Executive Director of the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and malaria, who said that in terms of number of HIV infections, India had overtaken South Africa. At 5.13 million HIV infections, Indian numbers are less than that of South Africa, where an estimated number of 5.3 million people are infected. Earlier, actor-turned-HIV/AIDS activist Richard Gere had cast doubts on the Indian Government's HIV/AIDS numbers.
The Government in its rebuttal has said that the Indian statistical model to estimate HIV positive follows the guidelines laid down by UNAIDS and World Health Organization. An independent expert group on HIV estimates, which includes international experts has further validated the data.
"We have validated and re-validated our data, and are confident that there is lesser prevalence of HIV/AIDS in India than South Africa. India remains a low-prevalent country," Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss contested Dr Feachem's claim. Officials point out that the comparison between the two countries is untenable.
"In South Africa, 21.5 per cent of the population are HIV positive, while in India it is less than one per cent of the population. The comparison is misleading and counter-productive," asserted NACO chief Dr SY Quraishi. The World Health Organization, too, has thrown its lot with India on the AIDS statistics controversy. "India follows guidelines laid by the WHO, and data is validated by an independent expert group. Why do you (Indian Press) give importance to statements (of people) who have no evidence," asked Dr Salim J Habayeb, WHO representative to India. Dr Feachem later clarified in a letter to the Health Ministry that his comment is based on his "personal belief."
The turnabout is thanks to Tamil Nadu's decade-long efforts in arresting the trend of HIV prevalence, pushing it down to less than one per cent of the population in the last three years. In Tamil Nadu, the number of positive people in general population dropped from 1.25 per cent in 2002 to 0.75 per cent in 2003 and 0.5 per cent in 2004. Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka are yet to show results.
The 2004 round was conducted in 478 sentinel sites all over the country, out of which 258 sites were antenatal clinics, 151 clinics treating sexually-transmitted disease, 19 sites captured HIV infection among injecting drug users, 11 sites among homosexual men and 39 sites among female sex workers. The Institute for Research in Medical Statistics and National Institute of Health and Family Welfare sifted through the data, while an expert group in HIV estimates validated the final estimates.
The Health Ministry has assessed that states of Assam, Bihar, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa and Uttranchal are highly vulnerable to the epidemic considering their population, migration and poor health infrastructure.
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I don't trust Govt figures. Not much is done to control HIV/AID in India and they are saying sudden drop in new cases. How this is possible?