India has the second largest AIDS population in the world, close to about four lakh people out of the 3.5 to 4 million people tested for the disease have so far been found HIV positive.

In India, Maharashtra accounts for the largest AIDS population in the country, followed by states like Tamilnadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Manipur and Nagaland – all states having an HIV population of more than one percent, causing these states to be in the high risk category. About 23 states in the country have been identified as AIDS prone states. Commercial Sex Workers (CSW) are the main vehicle of spreading the disease, and young urban adults from the lower socio-economic group are most prone to get infected, as per the findings of the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) studies.

According to Sanjay Chaganthi, Programme Director, HIV/AIDS Prevention, Population Services International (PSI), one among the main NGOs into creating awareness and prevention of AIDS in the country, Tamilnadu has the second largest AIDS population in India, and the districts of Chennai, Namakkal and Tirunelveli have been found to have the maximum number of victims.

Elaborating the projects of PSI, he said the NGO had launched ‘Operation Light House’, a comprehensive programme undertaken among 12 Indian port cities to prevent AIDS. The project is being monitored by a technical advisory committee comprising of representatives from the State Government, port authorities and members of the NGOs. By this programme, the volunteers spread the message of prevention among the port related population through individual counseling, camps etc. In Tamilnadu, the scheme is being implemented at the port cities of Chennai and Tuticorin, said the Programme Director, who added that the programme had helped the Ministry of Shipping to formulate a National AIDS/HIV work place policy.

He said PSI is also in the process of setting up Voluntary Counseling Testing (VCT) centres across the country, where people can test for the disease at nominal rates. The centres are equipped with a three-member team of doctor, counselor and a lab technician. Details of the patients are kept as secret, and the services include referral facilities and medical monitoring. The Chennai centre, started in November last year, receives about 250 people per month for availing the facilities, Sanjay said.