New Delhi: The Andhra Pradesh government is gearing up to face the problem of AIDS head on.
Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhar Reddy announced on Saturday that the state government is planning to make pre-marital HIV screening mandatory as part of preventive measures.
However, before bringing in legislation, it wants to conduct extensive public debate on the issue.
"The collectors have been asked to initiate the exercise of building public opinon in favour of mandatory HIV screening to prevent the sprerad of AIDS in the state," PTI quoted Revenue Minister D Prasada Rao as saying.
The legislation will empower prospective brides and grooms to insist on a pre-marriage medical certificate before tying the knot.
Although the HIV incidence in the state has slightly declined from 2 to 1.4 per cent in recent times due to the efforts of the government and NGOs, the state still has the dubious distinction of being home to the highest number of AIDS patients in the country.
Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Manipur and Nagaland are among other states that have been classified as "badly affected", where the prevalence of HIV is considered "endemic".
Comments
0 comment