HIV/AIDS cases 'drop' by half

The incidence of HIV/AIDS in the country has come down exactly by half as per the latest data released by the National Family Health Survey 3.

However, Health Minister A Ramdoss, who announced the new figure of 2.47 million today, said it could not be compared with the earlier figure of 5.2 million which was derived from samples taken from the 1,200-odd surveillance sites in the country.

The present data is based on the population-based survey done along with the house-to-house survey of the NFHS where blood samples were collected for the first time to compile the HIV data.

The data was combined with the data available from the sentinel surveillance sites to get the figure of 2.47 million.

Ramdoss said the incidence of HIV as per the new estimate is .36 per cent. The incidence as per last year's sentinel surveillance data of 5.2 million is .9 per cent.

The government may be cautious in its reaction, but the sentinel surveillance figures, which have been available for the last 10 years, indicate a trend towards decrease. However, the lower number of HIV cases were not attributed to either more HIV deaths or less HIV infections or any other cause.

The minister, who also launched the third part of the National AIDS Control Programme today, said the lower figures did not mean less funds for the programme.

NACP 3 would get a total of Rs 11,585 crore till 2012 with over Rs 8,023 crore from the government finances and the rest from donor agencies like the World Bank, UNDP, DFID, Global Fund , Bill Gates Foundation and Clinton Foundation. Ramdoss said that the new figures also did not warrant an apology from UNAIDS, which had all along been insisting that India was underestimating its HIV/AIDS numbers. "We are working together and no one needs to apologise," he said.