Rayagada needs a sturdy road map for AIDS eradication
Badal Tah,Odishabarta
Rayagada, December 2: During observing World AIDS day at Kendriya Vidyalaya, Rayagada and addressing the adolescent students, Dr.V.L.N.Raju said that as a preventive measure, awareness is the key panacea to eradicate HIV AIDS from the society as it has no cure. “Social ostracisation of persons affected with AIDS still takes place due to prevalence of various stigmas in the society. Students, teachers, health workers, community based organisations, media personnel, panchayati raj institutions, corporate, transgenders, truckers, migrants along with the associations of Persons Living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus(PLHIV) should build alliances and work together and complement each others’ efforts, which will go a long way’, said Raju.
Dr. Sravan kumar Sahukar, who moderated the event, elaborated the technicalities of AIDS in a lucid way. Presenting the statistics of the district as a whole he cited that there was no death during last three years except one. “Though the programme is getting executed since year 2003 there is a decreasing trend in the number of positive people and death. From year 2003 199132 persons got tested out of 142994, who were counselled. Till the year total death count comes to 1182. Total number of Children Living with HIV is 68. 627 patients are Anti-Retroviral Therapy(ART) registered. 783 affected persons are availing Madhu Babu Pension Yojana(MBPY). Most of the tests are now available in the district headquarters whereas Integrated Counselling & Testing Centres(ICTC) are available in almost all CHCs and sub-divisional hospital at Gunupur. The students and youths must jot down today’s message & learning and make those viral in social media ”, said Sahukar.
“Orissa State Aids Control Society (OSACS) has directed to execute 5T norms in the high-risk districts like Rayagada during 2021. Monthly and quarterly coordination meetings by concerned wing in the health deppt must be conducted in true spirit. As mostly the AIDS patients come from poor background and need nutritious food, govt must go beyond MBPY to lessen several drudgeries of the affected like housing with proper sanitation, one time economic assistance to be self reliant, support for the studies of their children, etc. The district cell needs to map the serious cases and recommend those cases to district administration authorities like District Collector or Zilla Parishad for further assistance. The Civil Societies and philanthropists may be approached to sponsor needy cases. A few ompanies through their CSR-wing are taking up several steps to support the differently abled, which is a national priority, especially in Aspirational Districts like Rayagada. They must also come up with a comprehensive plan to do the needful. Impact of good projects like AHANA-PPTCT should be shared with the public to further strengthen the sensitization process. A brief annual report of the District AIDS cell depicting the initiatives taken should be shared widely. A patient taking medicines regularly and survived for a long period, who wants to expose himself & speak about his life before the public, must be taken as ambassador of change. He will be the role model before the public, especially the patients, who go through a low feeling. A strategic roadmap involving the concerned stakeholders is need of the hour to sustain the decreased AIDS cases in the district”, said Dr Badal Tah, Advisor of Rayagada Network of Positive People(RNP+). Dignitaries, who spoke on the occasion, are Dr Majid, Dr.Rajendra Kumar Soren, Dr.Gyan Prakash das from District Headquarters Hospital, Rayagada and Sri Baibhav Jain, Principal of Kendriya Vidyalaya, Rayagada.
Ms Swadha Dev Singh, IAS, Collector Rayagada seems to be sensitive to the contextual issues and has responded to the challenges. Fortunately the patients have direct access to Singh, who always give a patient hearing and strive for a workable solution.
