India has 2.1 million HIV positive people, third highest in the world

New Delhi: India has the third largest HIV population in the world with approximately 2.1 million people suffering from it, but there are only eight lakh people who are undergoing Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART) treatment, according to an official data.

On World AIDS Day, Union Health Minister J P Nadda had sought people's involvement to meet the global goals of zero new infection and death from HIV/AIDS. He had also stressed on raising awareness and boosting preventive methods as the key to the success of the mission.

However, the report notes that the programme has to customise its strategies to effectively address the emerging vulnerabilities and adapt them to suit the requirements of different geographical regions.

"Till the last surveillance round which is till 2011, there has been either a stabilisation or a drop in the key populations at national level," said Tawil, while explaining the overall data.

The next trend surveillance round is slated to be held by mid-next year, which will indicate if the trends have changed.