The second part of the story--in the Industry and Mines Observer dated September16-30,2009.

HIV/AIDS spreads its tentacles in Bolangir

Balangir ICTCs run short of technicians;HIV testing hit

THURSDAY, 01 DECEMBER 2011 23:13

SUDHIR MISHRA | BALANGIR

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Even as the World AIDS Day was observed on Thursday with much fanfare with a new theme “Zero new HIV infections, Zero discrimination, Zero AIDS-related deaths”, the vacant posts of laboratory technician in Integrated Counseling and Testing Centres (ICTCs) opened in the migration-prone rural areas of the district, have hit the detection and diagnosing of HIV/AIDS patients.

According to sources, out of the 14 blocks of the district, only in five ICTCs located at Balangir, Titilagarh, Patnagarh, Kantabanji and Chudapali, required number of counsellors and laboratory technicians are found. The technicians at Government PHC of Saintala, Loisingha and Degoan have been given training on HIV/AIDS too. But in the most migration-prone areas, where people are more vulnerable toHIV/AIDS, such as Tureikela, Khaprakhol, Muribhal, Sindhekela, Tusura and Gudvella, there is no laboratory technician to test the infection of the disease. In the district headquarters hospital, there is only one lab technician who is in charge of both the sections of the ICTC.

“Mere counselling is not enough and it is futile to expect poor persons to go to distant places to test their blood. If a poor person returns from an ICTC without being tested, it becomes very difficult to bring him again to the testing centre,” pointed out an NGO worker.

So far 492 persons have been detected as HIV positives and 68 persons have died due to AIDS, informs CDMO Dr Vikrant Kindo. The CD4 machine is being installed here in the district and it would be functional after the technician joins here, Kindo informed. In the Balangir ART Centre, a total of 220 people are on pre-ART and 80 people are under ART treatment, he said.

Meanwhile, the Link Worker Scheme, which was working in the rural areas in the district since 2009 for identification of HIV/AIDS, treatment and linkages with different schemes, has been closed in the midway leaving its workers and patients in lurch.

“HIV/AIDS remains one of the biggest global challenges for our generation. It is essential to combat it through effective awareness campaign and education. Odisha is considered vulnerable due to a large number of persons resorting to distress migration. Balangir is highly prone to HIV/AIDS. Awareness is necessary,” said MP and convener of parliamentary committee on HIV/AIDS Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo.

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Wanted doctors to man ART Centre in Balangir

May 18, 2011 4:08:44 AM

Sudhir Mishra | Balangir

Even as combating of HIV/AIDS comes under the Millennium

Development Goal and India is a signatory to provide basic and

adequate health care to the HIV positives, yet the vacant posts of

medical officer for months in Balangir ART (Anti Retroviral

Therapy) Centre sans the State Government’s initiatives in filling

them up makes a mockery of the very purpose of the centre.

The ART Centre was opened just before the arrival of Red Ribbon

Express to Balangir for the second time in May 2010. Once the

centre was opened, it was hoped that it would provide effective

care treatment to the patients but ironically since day one it has

been marred by the vacancy of doctors. ART treatment is one of

the most crucial parts in tackling the HIV/AIDS.

Sources said ever since the commencement of the Integrated

Counseling and Testing Centre facility since November 2002, a

total of 420 people have been detected as HIV positives and as

many as 62 people have died of AIDS. The major reasons for

rising number of HIV positives in the district are large scale

migrations of labourers, ignorance, poverty, unsafe sexual

behavior and unsafe blood transfusion besides the use of

intravenous drug.

Out of the 420 HIV positives, as many as 70 are under ART

treatment which is given to a person whose CD4 count is less

than 250, said CDMO Dr PC Sahu. After the Link Worker Scheme

of Action Aid, awareness among people about causes of HIV/AIDS

has increased. A large number of people have been motivated to

check their HIV status and people were also encouraged to go for

safe blood through community Red Ribbon club, Sahu informed.

Availability of medicines is not a constraint but vacancies of

doctors, admitted Sahu who added that the doctor posts were

vacant after the contract of the tenure of earlier doctors expired.

“We have given advertisement for recruitment of senior medical

officers and we expect to complete the process by end of May,”

explained Sahu.

Earlier, patients used to visit to VSS Medical College and Hospital

at Burla for treatment. Now with the opening of the centre at

Balangir, they are advised to take treatment at here. Besides

Balangir district, patients of adjacent districts are also referred,

sources added.

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BHUBANESWAR | Sunday, December 26, 2010 | Email | Print |  | Back


DPS expels 16 HIV+ students
December 26, 2010   1:07:25 AM

PNS | Balangir

Barely a few days have passed since the observation of World AIDS Day with much fanfare allover the country, reiterating the pledge striving to achieve “universal access to healthcare and human rights of the HIV positive people”.

The Government of India is a signatory to United Nation Millennium Development Goal (MDG) which interalia, has set the target to combat the HIV, AIDS and reverse the trend of spreading it further, now comes the report of expulsion of 16 schoolchildren in Gurgaon in Haryana as they were found to be HIV positive.

The students were enrolled into the afternoon batch of Gurgaon’s highly reputed Delhi Public School(DPS), but were dismissed two days of their admission. The school management claimed to be “under prepared” to accommodate the HIV positive students.

The students were then transferred to Sarvodaya Vidyalaya, but only to suffer more atrocities at the hands of the school management. The students alleged to have been beaten, and forced to clean school premises by the teachers. This is totally unfortunate and Government should standup for the rights of these students.

In a letter written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Union Health Minister Gulam Nabi Azad and Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda on December 24, Convener of Parliamentary forum on HIV,AIDS and Balangir MP Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo has sought personal intervention of Prime Minister and “standing up of with rights of these HIVpositives students, besides action against official responsible for this incident

December 1, 2010 | Email | Print |  | Back 


HIV patients left high and dry
December 01, 2010   8:23:44 AM

SUDHIR MISHRA | BALANGIR

When the nation geared up to celebrate the World AIDS Day in a befitting way on December 1 to highlight the message of curbing the spread of HIV/AIDS and striving to achieve universal access to healthcare and human rights of the HIV patients, a large number of vacancies, including the crucial post of laboratory technician in the recently opened Anti-Retroviral Therapy Centre (ARTC) in Balangir, speaks contrary to it.

Opened in May on the eve of the Red Ribbon Express chugging into Balangir, the ARTC was supposed to be functional and effective enough to provide necessary ART treatment to the poor HIV patients of the district, facing difficulties to get the treatment at Burla, besides harassments there.

A total of 70 people are on the ART treatment and as many as 53 HIV positives are on the pre-ART treatment, informed an official at the District AIDS Prevention unit here.


So far, 368 people have been detected HIV+ and 46 have died of AIDS in the district here, the official informed further.

“A medical officer, counsellor and a pharmacist have been appointed here,” said CDMO PC Sahu.

Mere counselling is meaningless in the absence of laboratory technician in the ARTC as the needy patients cannot test their blood and they have to go to Burla and face the financial hardships and harassments there, pointed out an NGO activist working in the Link Worker Scheme of the Action Aid here.

All steps should be taken to appoint the laboratory technician first and then other posts to be filled up as it would go a long way to achieve the twin goals of effective care and treatment to the poor HIV people and also achieving the universal healthcare and human rights of these people, the activist viewed.

There is the provision for a laboratory technician to test HIV at Balangir, Titilagarh, Chudapli, Kantabanji and Patnagarh. However, as a large number of people migrate from Belpada, Khaprakhol, Murbahal Bongomunda and other blocks, there is no such provision there.

It is futile and unrealistic to expect a rural poor HIV+ to come either to the sub-divisional headquartres or district headquartres hospital to test his/her HIV status in view of the poor economic condition, social stigma and subsequent discriminations besides the high ignorance.

The number of HIV patients in the district is all set to go up once the testing facilities come up in all the migrant-prone blocks.

Moreover, the number of HIV positives are bound to go up further once the NGOs work more effectively.

“At the last moment, we receive a letter from the OSACS that the concerned NGO, working in HIV/AIDS, has been allotted this much of rupees for the work. We believe, they are not working properly,” remarked the CDMO.

Once the laboratory technicians are posted in all the blocks and the centre starts functioning properly, the number of HIV positives would go up further.

We are managing the situation by imparting training to the laboratory technicians of the other departments. Very soon, the HIV-testing facility would start at Saintala and Sindhekela, informed an official here.

Even as the leaders, medical personnel and the members of civil society organisations are striving their best to reverse the further spread of HIV/AIDS, the prolonged vacancies of laboratory technicians in the ARTC Balangir negates their assertions leaving the poor HIVpeople to suffer in the absence of treatment here.

Pertinent to note that, a person requires the ART treatment when his CD4 count is found to be below 250. Mostly, it is in the advanced stage. Unless this treatment is given, the death of the afflicted is inevitable.

Poor HIV+ patients at receiving end
November 19, 2010   7:03:01 AM

SUDHIR MISHRA | The Pioneer, Bolangir

The ordeal undergone by the poor rural HIV positive patients in the district here negates the very objectives of the United Nations Organisation (UNO). The UNO has put combating ofHIV/AIDS as one of its Millennium Development Goals (MDG) and has even stressed on scuttling its spread by providing universal access to treatment for all by 2015.

However, the absence of testing facilities, timely detection, care and treatment and reports of poor HIV+ patients of the rural areas, allegedly being harassed during the treatment, further compound the woes.

This KBK district has already earned a dubious distinction for its abject poverty. In recent times, a large number of HIV positives have been detected here, but when they desire treatment, the absence of facilities, shortage of laboratory technicians and poor economic condition further aggravate their ordeals.

Moreover, those who go to Burla for the Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART) treatment also suffer due to absence of laboratory technicians there. 

According to reports, three HIV positives of Titilagarh block were sent to Burla on November 10 for the ART treatment, but they had to return as the laboratory technician was absent on that day. 

Kubujha (34) (pseudonym) was attached to a private vehicle and got indulged in high risk behavior. As his health condition deteriorated, he consulted a few medicos, but none of them diagnosed him properly.

He was given simply symptomatic treatment and his health condition deteriorated.

When one of our local volunteers tried to counsel him on HIV/AIDS, it invited the wrath and abuses from the family and the volunteer was virtually driven away, informed an NGO activist working with the Link Worker Scheme of Action Aid.

“However I counselled him with much difficulty and managed to bring him to Titilagarh hospital. After testing, the couple was found to be positive and appeared to be on an advanced stage. As the condition of the husband was found to be positive, we counselled and tested his wife’s status and also found her positive,” the activist added.

Fearing discrimination, none of their brothers and family members came out to help Kubujha following which the activist had to shell out some extra money to bring the afflicted couple to Titilagarh.

Though he has his brother’s house in Titilagarh town, fearing being stigmatised, Kubujha refused to go to his brother house and preferred to spend a night on the railway platform.

The NGO activist again sent the couple to Burla for the ART treatment. Besides the couple, another HIV+ also accompanied them to Burla for the treatment. On that day also, the laboratory technician was absent and the poor patients had to return empty-handed.

“When they find it difficult to come over to Titilagarh, let alone distant Burla while by that time, God knows what would befall on them,” the activist rued. 

Even though the ART centre has been opened in the district headquarters town here, it is without the crucial laboratory technician. With no technicians available, the slogan to provide the basic healthcare and service to the HIV+ simply turns a tall talk, pointed out the NGO activist. 

Besides, there are no regular doctors to look after the Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) and Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD) clinics in the district here.

In view of the high prevalence of HIV in Titilagarh sub-division, at least there should be an STI/STD clinic with a medical officer in the district, opined the activist.

“There is no medical officer to run the STD clinic in the district. However, there is one 
Skin/ VD specialist looking after the Skin as well as STD patients,” informed CDMO PC Sahu, further opining that a link ART centre should also be started in the sub-divisional hospital seeing the increasing number of HIV+ cases there.

Pertinent to note that, the ART Centre was opened in April/May on the eve of the Red 
Ribbon Express visit to Odisha, but runs without a laboratory technician.

Moreover, most of the cases are detected at the eleventh hour when the health condition has already deteriorated. And, the major reasons are migration, ignorance, absence of treatment facilities and poverty.

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