07-12-2004, 11:46 PM
If AIDs is not checked, it will impact Indiaâs stability. It is as dangerous as any external threat to India.
2-5% of India's population is HIV carrier and 1% is suffering from AIDs.
<b>Army takes celluloid route to combat AIDS</b><!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->For the first time the Indian army admits that it could be facing an AIDS problem and it's taking the threat seriously.
Many of the army's jawans contract the HIV virus while in service. Testing is only done at the time of joining and so new cases only appear during treatment for other ailments or blood transfusion.
Alarming figures
<b>Estimates put this at around 2 per cent currently, but actual figures could be much, much higher</b>.
"The movement of our troops is quite frequent and there are some areas and borders like the Burma border where the vulnerability of our troops increases. Since the period of separation from the family is longer, there is a lot of interaction with the local population," said Lt Gen JR Bharadwaj, DG, AFMS<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->The film called Akhri Dastak on AIDS awareness will be shown to more than 1 million soldiers of the Indian army.
The film revolves around the life of a young jawan who contracts AIDS from a sex worker while he is away from his family. All commanding officers have been ordered to screen this film for their jawans<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
2-5% of India's population is HIV carrier and 1% is suffering from AIDs.
<b>Army takes celluloid route to combat AIDS</b><!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->For the first time the Indian army admits that it could be facing an AIDS problem and it's taking the threat seriously.
Many of the army's jawans contract the HIV virus while in service. Testing is only done at the time of joining and so new cases only appear during treatment for other ailments or blood transfusion.
Alarming figures
<b>Estimates put this at around 2 per cent currently, but actual figures could be much, much higher</b>.
"The movement of our troops is quite frequent and there are some areas and borders like the Burma border where the vulnerability of our troops increases. Since the period of separation from the family is longer, there is a lot of interaction with the local population," said Lt Gen JR Bharadwaj, DG, AFMS<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->The film called Akhri Dastak on AIDS awareness will be shown to more than 1 million soldiers of the Indian army.
The film revolves around the life of a young jawan who contracts AIDS from a sex worker while he is away from his family. All commanding officers have been ordered to screen this film for their jawans<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->