Assam reported a rise in HIV infections linked to drug injection: State Health Minister

Assam’s health minister, Keshab Mahanta, said on Friday that drug injections have been identified as the primary reason of the state’s rise in HIV-AIDS infections.

In front of the assembly, he reaffirmed that the government has been assisting HIV-positive people with support from NGOs.

To protect the patients’ confidentiality, the specifics were withheld, however.

During Question Hour, Congress MLA Sibamoni Bora brought up the issue of the state’s HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) prevalence, stating that the number of new cases has increased.

According to her, over half of the drug dealers are also affected.

Bora said that since the Covid-19 epidemic began, the government has not given as much attention to raising public awareness of HIV.

Mahanta responded by stating that out of 89,84,519 tests performed between 2002 and 2023, 31,729 HIV-AIDS infections were found in the state.

5,791 of the 9,90,372 tests that were performed in 2023 up to December were deemed to be positive. Indeed, there has been a rise, and we are investigating,” he said.

The minister said that the government and NGOs were collaborating closely, particularly when it came to treating infected individuals and raising awareness among vulnerable groups.

“But we can only give you figures, we cannot specify the work being done,” he said, underscoring the need of maintaining confidentiality while addressing HIV-AIDS patients.

According to him, injectable medication transmission is presently responsible for the greatest number of new instances of the virus.

“A campaign against illicit narcotics has already been started by the state administration. However, more has to be done to put an end to it completely,” he said.

According to Mahanta, the state’s population is more susceptible since it serves as a transit hub for the rest of the northeast, and treating patients from other states in Assam raises the state’s total number of cases.

According to him, the state government has been offering all testing, counseling, and treatment services at various government-run and other health centers, as well as in vulnerable locations like jails.

Rupak Sharma, a BJP lawmaker who was also present at the meeting, said that if additional tests are carried out, the state’s HIV/AIDS case count may rise even more.