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| AIDS bomb ticking in backyard, Mangat sets out global agenda | | | Early Times Reporter
Jammu | Feb 14
Perhaps ignorant of the AIDS bomb ticking at home, the Health and Medical Education Minister Mangat Ram Sharma seems to have taken a larger agenda of eradicating the deadly disease from earth.
An official spokesman for the Health Minister quoted Mangat Ram as saying that “a sustainable campaign should be launched to eradicate AIDS from surface of earth”. The Health Minister was speaking at a function organized by a FM Radio Channel.
Mangat stressed that thrust of the campaign is to start a sustained fight against AIDS by involvement of more people from different walks of life including individuals, groups, trade unions, faith groups or member of any society.
The Health Minister was apparently ignorant of that the AIDS bomb is ticking in his backyard. While officials claim there are 745 such cases in the state, unofficial estimates peg the number at 25,000. The most sad part of the story is that there is a steep rise in the AIDS cases across the state. In 1999, there were only two cases reported.
'Though Jammu and Kashmir lies in the low prevalence zone, it does not mean that the threat of HIV/AIDS is any less here,' said an official of the Jammu and Kashmir State AIDS Prevention and Control Society (JKSAPCS).
'Considering the peculiar factors and present circumstances, the state is uniquely positioned and spreading awareness about the virus is a greater challenge,' he added.
With only 56 percent literacy in the state, disseminating information and spreading awareness about the disease have not been an easy task. The inhospitable weather conditions and the difficult terrain also pose major hurdles.
'Since several languages and dialects are spoken in the state - Kashmiri, Urdu, Dogri, Punjabi, Ladakhi, Pahari and Gojari - it's even more challenging to accomplish minor tasks like developing video films, songs and posters,' he added.
The growing number of intravenous drug users and an increase in prostitution has also sparked off fears of a worsening AIDS scenario in the state.
'Existing NACO (National AIDS Control Organisation) guidelines do not provide costing and implementation of the Targeted Intervention (TI) programme for migrant labourers in a systematic manner, which for example is the second highest risk group in Jammu and Kashmir,' said the AIDS official.
However, in a novel attempt to combat the spread of HIV/AIDS, the JKSAPCS has roped in religious leaders like Muslim imams and Sikh granthis in the state to educate people against the spread of the deadly virus.
Religious leaders are no longer hesitant to talk about safe sex now despite being part of a conservative society. Initially, the programme was implemented in six districts of Kashmir, and nearly 400 imams have been trained so far. The JKSAPCS is also holding talks with Sikh and Christian priests to involve them in the programme. The initiative draws inspiration from Uganda and Indonesia, where such messages are being propagated through imams.
Meanwhile, appreciating the efforts of Big 92.7FM and J&K AIDS Control Society, the Minister said that the AIDS awareness should be sustained with great fervor at district and block level by organizing such programmes for increasing AIDS awareness among general masses across the state.
The Minister appealed to all sections of the society to join hand and pledge total commitment for ensuring a sustained fight against this dreaded disease, which is threatening the very existence of very mankind. |
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