The Hindu Business Line : AIDS awareness campaign in TN, AP planned

POPULATION Services International (PSI), a non-governmental organisation, is to launch an awareness campaign in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh aimed at preventing HIV/AIDS. The campaign starts at the end of the week, and will run for four months.

Mass media — newspapers, television, radio and hoardings — will be the channel used by PSI to communicate its message. PSI chose to raise awareness levels through the mass media because it offers the largest possible reach at a single stroke.

Mr Sanjay R. Chaganti, Programme Director, PSI, said the campaign aims to highlight the link between behaviour pattern and the risk of contracting infection. The Tamil Nadu AIDS Control Society will support PSI in the campaign.

"Young urban men in lower socio-economic groups" have been shown in studies as one of the highest risk groups in the spread of HIV/AIDS. PSI's Tamil Nadu-based surveys have identified behaviour patterns among the high-risk group of young urban men, and the awareness campaign aims to link specific behaviour patterns with contraction of HIV.

PSI's campaign in Tamil Nadu comes in the wake of a similar campaign in Mumbai.

Mr Chaganti said the campaign in Mumbai succeeded in raising awareness levels. Putting PSI's campaigns in context, he said, "Today we are sitting on a time bomb in India. There is only a four year window of opportunity before AIDS becomes a generalised epidemic in India."

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication

Stories in this Section
Cloud seeding in northern Karnataka districts to begin today

Spectre of price spiral looms

Greenspan pooh-poohs inflation targeting

FIEO inks MoU with Chinese manufacturers body

AIDS awareness campaign in TN, AP planned

Foodgrain merchants against power tax

Spinners cut yarn rates for Sept deliveries

Meet to help SSIs set up defence ancillaries

Green signal for cloud seeding in AP

Panel may look into CAS implementation in Kolkata

No ad exodus from pay channels for now