World AIDS Day, 2021: Awareness is the key

This year’s observance of World AIDS Day was one of people-oriented and people benefitted.  It was organized for people’s participation in the nation’s fight against HIV/AIDS and made it people’s program for the control of HIV and treating the infected with concern and care.  It was an opportunity to make the activities of Caritas India and Caritas Australia more visible to the people and the State, inviting everyone for a joint effort in the movement.

To sensitize the people on HIV and other communicable diseases and to control their spread, mass communication programs, like street plays, mega public address systems have been adopted during the day. Street Plays were conducted in the street corners of Seemapuri, Seelampur and Loni Roundabout, apart from distributing pamphlets and IEC materials, which helped almost 220 people from the general population, to work towards prevention and curb the spread of the diseases.   By organizing and conducting these activities, a great amount of right knowledge and awareness about HIV/AIDS and other communicable diseases like tuberculosis etc. is created among the masses in general and targeted groups in particular.

It helped us to work out on the attitudinal changes needed towards HIV/AIDS infected and affected persons. These World AIDS Day strategies for awareness, prevention and elimination of discrimination were also aimed at integrating the HIV infected with the rest of the population.

This ensures that lives, especially those of women and children, made already vulnerable by disease, are not made even more vulnerable.

Lastly, environmental upkeep, making community surroundings clean has been advocated by proper disposal of garbage, kitchen wastage, diversion of dirty water and open defecation.   This is because the health of people depends on personal guidance on how water can be made potable, toilets are maintained, adoption of healthy sexual behaviors, following faithfulness and maintaining single sexual partners.