PUNE, Jan 1: Rs 177 crore have been sanctioned for a five-year action plan to control AIDS in Maharashtra, said Dr Subhash Salunke, technical coordinator of World Bank, speaking at a workshop organised by the Maharashtra State AIDS Control Society at the Aundh Health Centre this morning.Of this amount, the United States will give Rs 140 crores. A separate fund has also been set up for Bombay where Rs 20 crore will be spent on tackling the disease. ``The AIDS scourge has taken on alarming proportions and all the states in the country have chalked out similar action plans to deal with it,'' said Dr Salunke, adding that the number of AIDS patients was highest in Sangli in Maharashtra. As per information available till 1997, the number of patients who died because of AIDS in the world was 1.17 crore and 3.34 crore people had tested HIV positive with developing countries showing more cases of AIDS, he said explaining the magnitude of the problem.The first phase of the action plan drawn up to battle the killer disease will give priority to Sangli, Pune, Mumbai and Thane, explained Dr Salunke, making an appeal to Non Government Organisations to come forward and help in creating awareness amongst people, and mainly commercial sex workers.
