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HIV/AIDS
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India is one of the largest and most populated countries in the world, with over
one billion inhabitants. Of this number, it's estimated that around 2.4 million
people are currently living with HIV. Despite being home to the world's second-largest
population suffering from HIV/AIDS, the AIDS prevalence rate in India is lower than
in many other countries. The spread of HIV in India is primarily restricted to the
southern and north-eastern regions of the country and India has also been praised
for its extensive anti-AIDS campaign. The main factors which have contributed to
India's large HIV-infected population are extensive labor migration and low literacy
levels in certain rural areas resulting in lack of awareness and gender disparity.
HIV emerged later in India than it did in many other countries. Infection rates
soared throughout the 1990s, and today the epidemic affects all sectors of Indian
society, not just the groups ? such as sex workers and truck drivers ? with which
it was originally associated.
In 2006 UNAIDS estimated that there were 5.6 million people living with HIV in India,
which indicated that there were more people with HIV in India than in any other
country in the world.
In 2007, following the first survey of HIV among the general population, UNAIDS
and NACO agreed on a new estimate ? between 2 million and 3.1 million people living
with HIV.
In 2008 the figure was estimated to be 2.31 million.
In 2009 it was estimated that 2.4 million people were living with HIV in India,
which equates to a prevalence of 0.3%. While this may seem low, because India's
population is so large, it is third in the world in terms of greatest number of
people living with HIV. With a population of around a billion, a mere 0.1% increase
in HIV prevalence would increase the estimated number of people living with HIV
by over half a million.
A recent study published in the British medical journal "The Lancet" in (2006) reported
an approximately 30% decline in HIV infections among young women aged 15 to 24 years
attending prenatal clinics in selected southern states of India from 2000 to 2004
where the epidemic is thought to be concentrated. The authors cautiously attribute
observed declines to increased condom use by men who visit commercial sex workers
and cite several pieces of corroborating evidence. Some efforts have been made to
tailor educational literature to those with low literacy levels, mainly through
local libraries as this is the most readily accessible locus of information for
interested parties. Increased awareness regarding the disease and citizen's related
rights is in line with the Universal Declaration on Human Rights.
The estimated adult HIV prevalence was 0.32% in 2008 and 0.31% in 2009. The states
with high HIV prevalence rates include Manipur (1.40%), Andhra Pradesh (0.90%),
Mizoram (0.81%), Nagaland (0.78%), Karnataka (0.63%) and Maharashtra (0.55%).
The adult HIV prevalence in India is declining from estimated level of 0.41% in
2000 through 0.36% in 2006 to 0.31% in 2009. Adult HIV prevalence at a national
level has declined notably in many states, but variations still exist across the
states. A decreasing trend is also evident in HIV prevalence among the young population
of 15?24 years.
The estimated number of new annual HIV infections has declined by more than 50%
over the past decade.
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