Revised India data downs global AIDS figures

According to the report, the current estimate of 33.2 million living with HIV replaces the 2006 estimate of 39.5 million. The report says that if the new methodology is retrospectively applied to the data for 2006, there would have been just 32.7 million people living with HIV. However, as per the report in 2007, 33.2 million were estimated to have been living with HIV, 2.5 million people became newly infected and 2.1 million people died of AIDS.

The new report has brought smiles to experts here, but they said a lot more needs to be done. 8220;It is a result of combination of various factors which has caused this. We have better data now and have been investing hugely, all this must have made an impact,8221; said National AIDS Control Programme Director General K Sujatha Rao. 8220;There is a possibility that the epidemic has reached the peak and can8217;t go any further. It8217;s a matter of satisfaction, but there is a lot to be done to make us feel happy here.8221;

It was only in July this year that a Ministry of Health and Family Welfare report backed by the United Nations showed that the number of people infected with HIV/AIDS in India had fallen to less that half of previous official estimates of around three million, putting India below South Africa and Nigeria.

Before this, India was viewed to have the largest number of HIV-positive cases with 5.7 million infections reported in 2006. The prevalence level of the infection also saw a dip, and is now estimated to be around 0.36 per cent of the population, down from the earlier 0.9 per cent.

This followed the implementation of a new survey methodology considered more precise and accurate by experts. Previously, UNAIDS arrived at the 5.7-million figure by using hundreds of surveillance centres to test the blood of pregnant women and high-risk groups such as drug users and prostitutes over four months each year.

The latest method uses both surveillance data and a population-based survey. This tested blood samples and covered about 200,000 people ages 15-54, including face-to-face interviews, between December 2005 and August 2006.

AIDS in India

Top 5

8226;Manipur 1.68

8226;Nagaland 1.27

8226;Andhra 1.06

8226;Karnataka 0.81

8226;Maharashtra 0.75

Bottom 5

8226;Assam, HP 0.03

8226;Jammu 038; Kashmir 0.04

8226;Arunachal Pradesh 0.05

8226;Madhya Pradesh 0.06

8226;Sikkim, Uttarakhand 0.08

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