Killer virus claims 195 in 3 years

NAMAKKAL: As many as 195 HIV positive persons have died in the past three years, apart from 14 who passed away during the current calendar year.According to Dr Ramesh, who heads the ART Centre at the GH here, as many as 75 people with the infection died in 2009 and 65 perished the following year. In 2011, the deadly disease claimed the lives of 55 and in the first four months of the current year, 14 persons died.He noted that all the victims did not belong to the district as many came from other districts and, when their immunity hit a very low ebb, they lost their lives. Since 2005, 12,814 registered for HIV infection of which, 7,296 were on antiretroviral therapy (ART).