MLFHA's balm to AIDS widows, orphans
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, May 18 2011:
In a bid to console the woes of AIDS widows and orphans in the State, Manipur Legislators' Forum on HIV/AIDS has said that it would pay extra attention to the problems being faced by them.
Forum Chairman and Manipur Legislative Assembly Speaker I Hemochandra while speaking to reporters in a press conference conducted at his office chamber said, the forum would put effort to bring same entitlement of right and respect from the society like any normal individual and child for AIDS widows and orphans.
Special fund would be earmarked for them, Hemochandra said and added that the Forum in co-ordination with various related Government departments would ensure special schemes to these people.
According to the Epidiological Analysis conducted by Manipur AIDS Control Society (MACS), out of the total 38, 016 HIV infected people in the State, 10, 109 are women and 2578 are children.
However, the analysis does not have separate datas of AIDS widows and orphans.
Taking part at the press conference, Forum Secretary Dr Ibohalbi said, as there is no special scheme for this section of people, special attention must be given to them in collaboration with the related departments.
Citing the possible reason for the increase of prevalence rate from 17 percent to 20 percent among injecting drug users (IDUs), Dr Ibohalbi said, MACS now sanctions money instead of providing syringes to NGOs for distribution to IDUs.
He added that the Forum had requested the State Government to install CD4 count machines in all the district hospitals and procure viral load testing machine for State.