There have been various ways to spread the cancer and awareness towards the ever-growing HIV and AIDS disease in India. The pace at which the disease is spreading throughout the country is not only a matter of concern and worry but also an issue that needs to be dealt with at the quickest. Faced with the alarming spread of HIV/ AIDS, officials in Andhra Pradesh have taped a pack of three condoms to the front page of thousands of newspapers delivered to people in 50 villages and four towns in a move to spread a message of safe sex.
Ashok Kumar, the director of Andhra Pradesh State for AIDS Control Society said, “Earlier we distributed condoms at wine shops and bars, through milk vendors and at pan (tobacco) shops but we met with lukewarm response,” says.
A recent study by the National Aids Control Organization indicated a 25 to 28 percent increase in the number of HIV infections in Andhra, making it the worst affected state in India, with nearly one million known cases in 2005.
The latest attempt to control HIV was centered on Nizamabad town, 170 km (105 miles) northeast of Hyderabad, the state capital.
HIV/AIDS is the fourth biggest killer in the world today. Thirty-nine million people are infected with HIV/AIDS worldwide, and according to the United Nations’ AIDS body; 5.7 million people are living with the virus in India. Infact activists say the true figure may be far higher.
There are various reasons such as Conservative attitudes to sex and contraception, a lack of awareness and discrimination that make it hard to tackle HIV/AIDS in India, especially in rural areas.