Chennai: AIDS programme for hotel workers inaugurated

[Guest guest]

AIDS programme for hotel workers inaugurated

Special Correspondent

The Hindu. Friday, June 16, 2006

The group needs special attention and care: Health Minister They need special

attention and care: Health Minister

CHENNAI: Statistics indicate that a large number of workers in the hotel sector

are infected with HIV/AIDS. This necessitates better attention to the group from

all those involved in care and support, prevention and creating awareness about

HIV/AIDS, Health Minister K.K.S.S.R. Ramachandran said on Thursday.

He was speaking at the inaugural of an intervention programme among hotel

workers, organised by Standard Chartered Bank and the Rural Education and

Economic Development Association (REEDA), here. Health Secretary V.K. Subburaj

said the incidence of HIV in Tamil Nadu was about 0.5 per cent, amounting in

sheer numbers to three lakh persons. Noting the incidence among hotel workers,

he said the group should be considered with special attention. He congratulated

the organisers for launching the movement to focus attention on a hitherto

ignored sector.

Presenting a cheque for Rs.12.50 lakh - Standard Chartered Bank's contribution

towards the project - to Manimekalai Kannan, president, REEDA, the bank's head

of consumer bank audit, n Wynter, said corporate social responsibility was

of great importance to the bank. It helped align human concerns with the bank's

business interests.

Nisha Gupta, behavioural scientist, Centers for Disease Control, based in

Chennai, said the infection was clearly in the general population. India's

workforce was affected by HIV, which, in turn, affected productivity.

In Solidarity,

Jagdish Harsh

email: jharsh@...

url: www.hiv.org.in

[Guest guest]

Dear Forum,

It is a good news that there will be AIDS programme for Hotel Workers. I

defintely accept that hotel workers are more risk in getting infected with

HIV/AIDS. In the coastal part of the Karnataka both Mangalore and Udupi, in

VCTC, Care and Support centers most of the HIV/AIDS cases reported among hotel

workers.

The HIV/AIDS cases reported among the hotel workers were working in Mumbai and

Pune. In one of Care and Support center, nearly 30% of the HIV/AIDS cases

reported among Hotel workers.

It was experienced that many of infected individual without their knwledge

transmit the infection to women. From last three years the HIV infection rate is

increasing among general population in both the districts.

To address this, it is very much needed to tackle this problem at the source of

infection. Considering this problem it is imperative there has to be similar

kind of programme addressing Hotel Workers. This intervention will be useful in

HIV/AIDS among Hotel wokers.

Thanks for giving me an opportunity for sharing my views.

regards,

Bharat S

e-mail: <bharatwrites2001@...>