State tops list of HIV infected pregnancy
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, August 19 2014:
According to the NACO's State Fact Sheet 2013, Manipur has the highest number of pregnant women infected with HIV among the Northeastern States.
Rate of pregnant women infected with HIV in Manipur is 1.22 per cent.
With 0.74 per cent and 0.73 per cent, Mizoram and Nagaland are listed in the second and third positions respectively.
In case the rate of pregnant women infected with HIV reaches 1 per cent or above, HIV prevalence rate among the general population is assumed to be very high.
Out of 100 pregnant women tested for HIV in Manipur, at least one is found to be positive as per the fact sheet.
Again, according to the CAG report of 2013, 2,14,136 pregnant women underwent HIV test in Manipur as against the target of 2,06,500.Out of them 1314 or 1 per cent were found to be positive.
Rate of HIV infection among pregnant women as per the Sentinel Surveillance Report published by MSACS was 0.8 per cent in 1994 .
It was 0.45 pc in 1995, 0.67 pc in 1996, 1.32 pc in 1997, 1.18 pc till February-March in 1998, 1.69 pc till August- September 1998, 2.70 pc in 1999, 1.07 in 2000, 2.04 pc in 2001, 2.4 pc in 2002, 1.34 pc in 2003, 1.66 pc in 2004, 1.3 pc in 2005 and 1.4 pc in 2006.Given these high rates of HIV prevalence, questions were being asked how effective were the several programmes taken up under the National AIDS Control Programme III between 2007 and 2012 with the primary objective of HIV prevalence among the general population below one per cent.
According to the same CAG report, the total number of HIV positive people in Manipur till March 2007 was 25,919.The figure rose to 40,855 by March 2012 .
The same figure rose to 43,171 in a report published by the Manipur State AIDS Control Society in 2013.Out of them 12,173 were women while children comprised 2811 .