477 HIV cases reported in 15 months at govt hospital in Uttarakhand, officials say ‘alarming trend’

“This is an alarming trend. Every day, we are seeing at least three new patients turning up with the infection… There is a fear of ostracisation which makes it harder to get patients to register,” he said.

“The primary cause is the sharing of syringes by men addicted to drugs. In this case, counselling has rarely worked. The second common cause is unprotected sex. However, we have been addressing this through counselling of people,” Dr Kumar said, adding that other departments have also been taking up the issue to spread awareness.

He said there were thousands of registered patients coming up for follow-ups. “Drug abuse is rampant and needs to be checked… we need to find out where the drugs are coming from.”

Vertical transmission (when the infection comes to offspring directly from a parent), mainly during pregnancy or childbirth, has become rare with advanced medicine, he said.

On Wednesday, following allegations and media reports on HIV cases among jail inmates, superintendent of Haridwar Jail said the reports claiming that 15 inmates were found HIV positive during a health camp for TB screening at the district jail were false.

“Among the inmates… 23 were found to exhibit symptoms of HIV. These 23 inmates have been in custody for varying durations — from one month up to 10 years. All HIV positive inmates are receiving treatment at the ART Centre,” a statement from the authorities said.