A doctors test drivers for HIV, in Patna City on Tuesday. Picture by Sachin

Patna Nov. 30: In spite of the efforts of the authorities, the numbers of AIDS patients are on the rise in the state.

A report recently released by the Bihar State Aids Control Society (BSACS) said that at present there are over 7,309 AIDS patients in the state and more than 1 lakh people are suspected to have HIV infection.

Ten years ago, the number of AIDS patients was 2,000 and the number of persons infected with HIV was only seven, said the report.

BSACS project director Devottam Verma told The Telegraph of the 35,440 people who have been tested positive with HIV, 35 per cent are women.

“The infection is high among migrant workers. They contact the disease in the metropolitan cities, where they go to work. Then, they return and infect their wives,” said Verma.

He said BSACS was running many programmes to educate the high-risk groups.

“We are running many such programmes. Antiretroviral therapy (ART) has been administered to 7,309 patients, in an advanced stage. AIDS centres have been established at all six state government-run medical colleges,” said Verma.

An official source said apart from children who were infected by their mothers during pregnancy everyone else could prevent infection by following basic rules.

“Use condoms and avoid infected needle or blood,” he said. Verma said BSACS had started Target Intervention programme to educate sex workers and drug addicts, and also members of the homosexual community.

“We ask people to abstain from having multiple sexual partners. But we realise that may not always be practical. So we ask all sexually active persons to use condoms. People must realise that prevention is the only cure for AIDS,” said Verma.

BSACS additional project director Devendra Prasad said: “Five districts — Araria, Lakhisarai, Katihar, East Champaran and Lakhisarai — have been identified for the large numbers of AIDS cases being reported from there. We have started Link Worker Scheme across 500 villages in these districts, where our workers go to and counsel the villagers on a one-to-one basis. We have also established nine community care centres where HIV-infected people are given free medicine and consultation.”

An AIDS specialist claimed that chances of HIV infection are higher in persons suffering from sexually transmitted diseases (STD). Additional 42 centres had been opened at various health facilities to provide free medication and counselling to patients suffering venereal diseases.”

“Patients suffering from STDs are 10 times more likely to contract AIDS. We are targeting them to prevent HIV infection in them,” said Prasad.

In addition to these activities, drop-in-centres are also being run by the organisation to help people suffering from infection.

“We have roped in many people as counsellors who are suffering from the disease themselves. They have formed a positive network and counsel others. They also educate other people in society which aims at stopping discrimination against people suffering from the dreaded infection,” said Santosh Chaudhary, monetary and evaluation officer in BSACS.