In a boost to family planning measures and controlling AIDS, the Government has earmarked nearly Rs. 400 crore for increasing the coverage of eligible couples under a programme which includes free distribution of oral birth control pills and condoms.
A total of Rs. 55 crore has been allocated for free distribution of contraceptives like oral pills, IUDs, tubal rings, E-pills and laparoscopes to the state government for distribution to couples free of cost through sub-centres, primary health centres (PHC), community health centres (CHC) and hospitals.
Under the project, 450 lakh cycles of oral pills, 75 lakh pieces of IUDs, 25 lakh packs of emergency contraceptive pills and 217.48 lakh pregnancy test kits are to be supplied to the health centres.
The procurement for condoms would be made as per the demand projected by the states and Union Territories and will be supplied to them during the financial year.
Apart from this, oral pills would be available to eligible couples through social marketing organisations.
Condoms would be provided to the states for distribution to eligible couples free of cost through sub-centres, PHCs, CHCs, hospitals. Condoms will also be made available to the eligible couples through condom vending machines.
The cost for this project, to be headed by the National AIDS Control Organisation, would alone be Rs. 304 crore.
The focus would also be on social marketing of the condoms.
Funds amounting to Rs. 50 lakh would be directly released to Senior Medical Officers (SMO) in Government hospitals for projects approved by them in specific areas.
According to 2006 estimates, the national adult HIV prevalence in India is approximately 0.36 per cent, affecting between 2 and 3.1 million people. If an average figure is taken, this comes to 2.5 million people living with HIV and AIDS, almost 50 per cent of the previous estimate of 5.2 million.
More men are HIV positive than women. Nationally, the prevalence rate for adult females is 0.29 per cent, while for males it is 0.43 per cent.
This means that for every 100 people living with HIV and AIDS, 61 are men and 39 women. Prevalence is also high in the 15-49 age group (88.7 per cent of all infections), indicating that AIDS still threatens the cream of society and those in the prime of their working life.
While adult HIV prevalence among the general population is 0.36 per cent, high-risk groups, inevitably, show higher numbers. Among Injecting Drug Users (IDUs), it is as high as 8.71 per cent, while it is 5.69 per cent and 5.38 percent among Men who have Sex with Men (MSM) and Female Sex Workers (FSWs), respectively.
Showing posts with label AIDS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label AIDS. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Legal aid clinics to benefit HIV positive persons in 16 districts
With 11 more legal aid clinics for the HIV infected to come up in the State on Wednesday, positive persons in 16 districts of the State will be served by free legal services and counselling.
The districts in which one clinic each will be inaugurated on Wednesday are Chennai, Dharmapuri, Villupuram, Krishnagiri, Salem, Tiruchi, Tirupur, Karur, Theni, Tuticorin and Kanyakumari.
To be set up by the Tamil Nadu State AIDS Control Authority in association with the Tamil Nadu Legal Services Authority, the centres will be manned by an advocate and counsellor appointed by the latter. Each clinic will be set up at a cost of Rs.2 lakh, received as funding from the National AIDS Control Organisation.
The clinics are meant to directly address issues of people living with HIV/AIDS, especially widows, destitute women and children, with sensitivity. They are a step in the direction of providing easy access to legal services wherever anyone has been wronged, or there is a denial of services, according to the policy note.
“Completely free services will be provided at these clinics. There has been a great demand from the districts for such clinics, especially since the first five clinics were able to redress the grievances of people who were infected with HIV and could not afford legal services,” S. Vijayakumar, Project Director, TANSACS, said. Mostly, cases concerning property disputes, alimony and inter-familial disputes come up at the clinics.
So far, the five clinics already set up in Namakkal, Dindigul, Madurai, Cuddalore and Tirunelveli districts have received a total of 1,913 non-legal and 432 legal petitions. Of these, 270 legal petitions and 1,011 non-legal cases have been settled, according to official figures. A substantial percentage of the clients at the legal aid were women. In several instances, disputes have been settled at the mere instance of the counsellor, even before taking the legal route, according to officials.
The districts in which one clinic each will be inaugurated on Wednesday are Chennai, Dharmapuri, Villupuram, Krishnagiri, Salem, Tiruchi, Tirupur, Karur, Theni, Tuticorin and Kanyakumari.
To be set up by the Tamil Nadu State AIDS Control Authority in association with the Tamil Nadu Legal Services Authority, the centres will be manned by an advocate and counsellor appointed by the latter. Each clinic will be set up at a cost of Rs.2 lakh, received as funding from the National AIDS Control Organisation.
The clinics are meant to directly address issues of people living with HIV/AIDS, especially widows, destitute women and children, with sensitivity. They are a step in the direction of providing easy access to legal services wherever anyone has been wronged, or there is a denial of services, according to the policy note.
“Completely free services will be provided at these clinics. There has been a great demand from the districts for such clinics, especially since the first five clinics were able to redress the grievances of people who were infected with HIV and could not afford legal services,” S. Vijayakumar, Project Director, TANSACS, said. Mostly, cases concerning property disputes, alimony and inter-familial disputes come up at the clinics.
So far, the five clinics already set up in Namakkal, Dindigul, Madurai, Cuddalore and Tirunelveli districts have received a total of 1,913 non-legal and 432 legal petitions. Of these, 270 legal petitions and 1,011 non-legal cases have been settled, according to official figures. A substantial percentage of the clients at the legal aid were women. In several instances, disputes have been settled at the mere instance of the counsellor, even before taking the legal route, according to officials.
