What is the current climate for HIV-positive individuals in India?
Since AIDS was first diagnosed in a female sex worker in 1986, much improvement in HIV/AIDS awareness and related services can be discerned, particularly in the urban areas and within the non-government organization, or NGO, sector. Over the last few years, the Indian government has demonstrated better commitment by increasing the number of HIV-related programs (including antiretroviral treatment) offered through its government hospitals, which the poor and those from rural areas can better access. However, the greatest obstacle is the stigma that is attributed to HIV disease, which is associated with “immoral” sexual behavior. But the negative impact of stigma is greater for women than men. The wives who are infected through their husbands (who visit sex workers) and subsequently transmit the virus to their children are usually blamed for their husband’s illness. Wives often worry about impending widowhood, which is associated with an inferior social status and limited financial resou
