Haryana Health and Family Welfare Minister Arti Singh Rao said the Haryana Government has developed a strong and sensitive healthcare framework, through which every possible treatment is being provided to HIV-infected individuals with quality and efficiency. She said we must all work together to make India AIDS-free, and public participation is crucial in achieving this goal.
HIV/AIDS is a serious disease, and spreading awareness among the masses is essential to defeat it. Arti Singh Rao was addressing the state-level programme organised in Kaithal on the occasion of World AIDS Day on Monday. Before this, she inspected the exhibition set up by the Health Department in the school premises.
She said the state has 104 ICTC centres, including the mobile ICTC of Faridabad. Haryana has 24 ART centres, of which 13 new centres have been established in medical colleges. In addition, 5 FI-ART centres and 4 Link ART centres are also providing services.
This has ensured the availability of life-saving medicines across all regions. She said that through the PPP mode, tests such as ultrasound, MRI, and CT scan are being provided free of cost to HIV patients. Since December 2021, the Haryana Government has been providing financial assistance of ₹2,250 per month to HIV-infected persons, under which ₹54 crore has already been distributed, and ₹27.78 crore has been approved for this year.
HIV patients are provided free blood by government blood banks. The Ministry of Railways, Government of India, provides a 50% concession in second-class travel for AIDS patients travelling to designated ART centres for treatment. In Haryana, HIV/AIDS-infected persons are entitled to free legal aid.
De-addiction centres are being run by the government in every district of Haryana. The Health Minister said that public awareness and community participation are the keys to our success. The Haryana State AIDS Control Society is running regular awareness campaigns.
The HIV/AIDS Act, 2017, has been implemented in Haryana. Six Divisional Commissioners of the state have been appointed as Ombudsmen, providing a free mechanism for filing and resolving complaints related to violations of the rights of HIV-infected persons. Additionally, the toll-free national helpline number 1097 is always available to provide confidential information, guidance, and counselling.
On this occasion, MLA Sh. Satpal Jamba said that the purpose of observing World AIDS Day is to spread awareness among people. Through awareness, we can defeat this disease. Many programmes are being organised by the government to raise awareness.
He said that we must work together to make the state and the country drug-free. We must pay full attention to our children and monitor their activities.