In the wake of reports on the high level of HIV prevalence among migrant workers, an AIDS awareness programme will be launched in the district among the labourers.
This was decided at a meeting on Thursday convened by the District AIDS Control Society that was presided over by Additional District Magistrate C. K. Prakash.
It has been found that Ernakulam has more number of HIV positive patients among injectable substance abusers compared with other districts, according to AIDS Control Society joint director Denis Joseph. The society has identified 1,200 persons who are habitual drug abusers. The practice of using the same syringe to inject the substance led to the spread of the virus, it was revealed.
The fact that migrants kept changing their places of work has been a hurdle to conducting preventive healthcare drives.
The society had also been working to prevent the spread of the virus by providing syringes to drug abusers. The meeting also decided to provide e-health cards to labourers on the lines of the system adopted by Kozhikode district. District Labour Officer Mohammed Niyas said the State’s Awas Insurance Scheme and health scheme could be combined.
Leprosy cases had also been identified among migrant workers. So far, 68 such cases had been identified.
