Fighting HIV, Andhra takes up the challenge

Rajeev Ranjan Dwivedi
Hyderabad:
Many call them 'homosexuals', some term them as 'Gay', but they euphemistically express themselves as MSM, or plainly men who have sex with men.
An official figure from Andhra Pradesh AIDS Control Society (APSACS) put their number in the state at 45,000, while community members claim their numbers to be around 1.4 lakhs.
"The increasing number of MSMs has put a challenge for Andhra Government in fighting AIDS as Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) and HIV prevalence remains high among this community," says G Ashok Kumar, the Project Director of APSACS.
According to reports, MSMs face the highest possible risk of contracting HIV as most of them try to hide their sex life.
"As far as MSM is concerned, I must admit that this is a very weak area for us and we need to work on this more," adds Kumar. An estimate puts the HIV prevalence rate in MSM community at around five per cent.
"But still there is a ray of hope, as examples of people braving up ridicule and ostracization keep propping up from within the community," he adds.
"In fact, there is an elected Councilor in Narsaraopet Municipality (Guntur District), who is a self confessed MSM and during elections his status was disclosed. His opponents ridiculed him during the campaigns but he had the last laugh!" reveals the project director.