AP, TS has highest prevalence of Adult HIV cases in India reveals National AIDS Control organization

The states of Andhra Pradesh (AP) and Telangana (TS) have been reported to have the highest prevalence of Adult Human immune Deficiency Syndrome Virus (HIV) cases compared to all other states in the country.

The National AIDS Control Organization (NACO) in its recently released annual report said that both AP and TS stands among top five states in the country having the highest adult HIV cases. It is said that these two southern states have crossed national average in having the HIV cases in the country.

In its report NACO has revealed that Telangana and Andhra Pradesh states have the highest prevalence of 0.78 per cent and 0.68 per cent placed at 4th and 5th Places only to follow after the eastern states of Mizoram which is having highest percentage of HIV cases with 2.04 per cent occupying first place followed by Manipur with 1.43 per cent and Nagaland with 1.15 per cent.

The states of Karnataka with 0.47 per cent, Goa with 0.42 per cent and Delhi with 0.30 per cent are the other regions in the country which are having highest Adult HIV cases.

“Though there has been a considerable reduction and declining trend is being witnessed with regard to registration of new cases of HIV in southern states, the prevalence of adult HIV is still a big concern and there has to be a continuous and consistent effort to eradicate the dreaded disease,” said Dr. Preethi Meena, Project Director Telangana AIDS Control Society.

In Southern region of India, AP, TS, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu are showing a declining trend in incidence of HIV, however Kerala is the only state in south which is still showing a stable trend, which is of a bit concern, revealed the NACO report.

It is also revealed that when focused on identifying new cases of HIV infections the states of Telangana and AP have also been grouped apart from 8 other states which are having a slow rising trend of new HIV infection cases.

Last year the state of Telangana contributed about 11 per cent to the total new cases of HIV infections registered across the country, followed by state of Bihar with 10 per cent new HIV infections.

West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Gujarat are other states which are in the chronologically decreasing order of their percentages of registering new HIV cases in the country.