Migration and AIDS menace in Orissa rising
Ganjam district of Orissa happens to be one of most AIDS prone districts of country. Major cause is migration and lifestyle of migrated labourers.
Young Yudhistir from Sheragada Block of Ganjam district in Orissa, with the aim to earn his livelihood and to add an extra amount to his family income had migrated to the neighboring Andhra Pradesh. Yudhistir had worked as a daily labourer in a factory. With fellow labourers, he had been visiting a red light area and returned while suffering from fever and diarrhea, and aftera blood test, he was detected with HIV positive.
Unlike Yudhistir, Bhima Sahu of the Khallikote block too had migrated to Mumbai ten years back, with a dream to provide his family a better living. But from there, he had to return to his native village after a prolonged fever only to confirm about the deadly infection. “Bhima is living through the fourth stage”, said Radhakant, one of the counselor at the Centre, informing that it takes nearly eight to ten years to reach at the stage and it is AIDS. “Bhima’s CD4 count is only 178 and he has already been reduced to a skeleton like body with decreased flesh and blood”, said the counselor adding that if proper nutrition and ART is not provided, then Bhima would be no more within next few months. Indian Journal of Medical Research has reported that this killer virus is on the rise in Orissa, recording as many as 459 AIDS-related deaths over the past three years till Oct 2009, while there has been a marginal decline of the incidence of AIDS in the country. As per the data, Orissa’s adult HIV prevalence rate has seen a rise from the 0.06 per cent level in 2002 to 0.22 per cent in 2006. This also explains why the number of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLHA) has increased over the same time-from 9,717 to 48,248; at a 400 per cent growth. In Orissa, the districts having higher rates of migration is Ganjam district have migrated to Surat & Alang of Gujarat to work in textile mills, the diamond cutting industry and Shipyards without adequate knowledge on the availability of health care facilities and are exposed to hazards and exploitation at their workplaces. “Ganjam has been identified among few vulnerable districts in the country”, said Dr. Rao. Notably, more than 6 lakh labourers particularly from Blocks like Hinjili, Polasara, Khallikote, Beguniapada, Sheragada and Purushottampur of the Ganjam district, do migrate only to Surat. “Most of the patients are from these blocks”, said Radhakant. Dr. Pinakini Sadongi too suggests same and state “most of the HIV/AIDS cases are from these areas of Ganjam from where labourers do migrate to other states”. The data at the MKCG Medical too suggest the alarming situation. Only one case of AIDS related death had been reported in 2006. The number rose to 19 the next year and it reached at 230 up to Dec, 2008. It went on increasing and 382 numbers of deaths had been recorded at the MKCG medical in 2009. However, now the number still increasing as 446 number of death cases has been recorded till June 2010. “These are reported cases, but some cases are not being reported as patients do not visit the Centres and their cases could not be detected. Otherwise, the number may rise”, said Dr Pinakini. Till June 2010, as many as 6220 number of patients have been registered at the ART centre in MKCG Medical, while 1094 number of patients live on ART. 680 numbers of patients had been transferred to other such centers and more than 200 patients had been recorded as Lost to Follow (LFU) till June 2010. Pregnant women too bear the burden of their mischievous husbands. As many as 100 cases of pregnant women infected with deadly virus have been recorded at MKCG centre. “Some times, we detect the cases of HIV/AIDS with husbands, after the detection in their pregnant women”, said Dr. Pinakini adding that number of such cases is increasing with increased awareness on the disease as in most of the health centres, blood test of pregnant women are being made compulsory. Case of Sulata Pradhan from Sorada block, now undergoing treatment at Sathi Centre, is heart rendering as her six-year old son Alok too was infected with the deadly virus and suffers from fever, diarrhea that shocked, Sulata, who had already lost her husband owing to AIDS five years back. “My man had gone to Surat. He died of the disease that was detected at last stage. Afterwards, we had to gone through the test and found positive”, said Sulata. “Another dangerous development is that the AIDS effected people multiply the infection rates as they do enjoy sex with their wife without her knowledge that her husband is AIDS affected”, said Dr Rao while adding that families in the rural areas of Ganjam from where the labourers do migrate should go for test and after confirming the status, should go for marriage.
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