Other States - Orissa   

Now get condoms at petrol pumps

BHUBANESWAR: Orissa State AIDS Control Society (OSACS) on Saturday entered into a memorandum of understanding with Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) for making condoms available at company’s selected outlets in the State.

UNICEF was also a player in the tripartite MoU as the international agency would extend its technical assistance.

The MoU to this effect was signed by IOCL General Manager V. Ramgopal, UNICEF’s State representative Shadrck Omol and project director of OSACS Parameswar Swain.

IOCL would put attractive displays with messages on HIV/AIDS at its retail outlets, distribute pamphlets containing informative literature on the disease and help distribute condoms.

Moreover, its retail outlet staff would be trained to become peer counsellors who would guide people seeking additional information. There are about 500 outlets of IOC operating in the State.

“Our main targets are truck drivers and their helpers. They have been identified as high-risk community all over the country.

Of late, we have noticed increasing trend in prevalence of HIV/AIDS in those districts which were linked with national highways,” OSACS project director Parameswar Swain said.

He said, “since fuel outlets are common meeting points of these drivers and helpers, we thought of spreading awareness messages from there itself.

IOCL came forward to sponsor displaying of messages at their cost.”

Condoms would be made available with free of cost as well as those who would prefer priced condoms could avail from special boxes to be put up at the outlets, Mr. Swain said.

In another MoU, OSACS partnered with Centre for Disease Control (CDC) from USA, Lepra Society and OSACS to tide over shortage of laboratory technicians for testing of people living with HIV and AIDS diseases.

On this occasion Dr. Rubina Imtiaz, country director of CDC-India, said her organisation would help capacity development of health service providers and strengthening of laboratory.

Plans were afoot to outsource laboratory technicians from Andhra Pradesh, said Manoj Kandher, assistant director of OSACS said.

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