Ministry plans e-quiz on AIDS awareness

[Guest guest]

Ministry plans e-quiz on AIDS awareness

Sarkar. [Friday, June 16, 2006 12:43:16 am TIMES NEWS NETWORK]

NEW DELHI: How does AIDS spread - by kissing, an injection or blood

transfusion? Can a woman become pregnant if she has intercourse

during menstruation? Answer these and many more questions related to

reproductive and sexual health and HIV/AIDS and win exciting prizes.

No, this is no bluff from any private health consultancy firm. It is

an initiative by the Union ministry of youth affairs and sports,

which is launching an online quiz programme to test your knowledge

and awareness about sexual health and HIV/AIDS. Celebrity quiz

master Siddharth Basu will anchor the programme.

" There is an alarming rise in HIV/AIDS cases among the youth and

this is mainly due to lack of awareness.

So, we want the GenNext to know about the issues related to HIV/AIDS

by a medium they consider the holy source of knowledge - Internet, "

said ministry secretary S Y Quraishi, adding, " They spend hours

playing cricket and shooting rockets through online games.

" We want to absorb some of this time in teaching them about sexual

health and primarily AIDS through edutainment. "

Over 300 questions have been selected by a team of experts from

UNAIDS, UNFPA, NACO and UNICEF while Basu has been the technical

adviser for the team. The quiz questions will be available at the

portals of India.

The order of questions will be changed on a regular basis by

permutation and combination, so one won't be able to win easily by

mugging up the answers, " said Quraishi.

He added, " The winners will be given prizes, which may not be in

cash but in kind as this will be an incentive for them to know more

about these burning issues concerning health. "

The web-based quiz is a part of the YUVA (Youth Unite for Victory on

AIDS) programme to be launched on June 27 by the ministry.

" YUVA envisages to reach out to adolescents and youth in all parts

of the country to ensure that by 2010, all young people have access

to accurate information and HIV prevention service and facilities in

a conducive, safe and supportive environment, " said Quraishi.

Around 21.9 million volunteers from various organisations like

National Service Scheme, National Cadet Corps, Association of Indian

Universities, Youth Red Cross Society, Youth Hostel Association,

RGNIYD are involved in the programme.

" A seven-member national monitoring team will be set up under the

chairmanship of the joint secretary (Youth Affairs) with heads of

the partner organisations to monitor the progress of YUVA, " Quraishi

said

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