Bangalore: Persons living with HIV/AIDS, especially young widows who are positive, die many deaths every day in their struggle to go through life. But the plight of HIV/AIDS orphans and positive children is worse — they are discriminated at school, ostracised by their family and have an uncertain future.

Across the globe, HIV positive groups observed World AIDS Orphans' Day on Monday to raise awareness about the needs of children of HIV positive people.

Karnataka is already among the high prevalence States for HIV, with the infection spreading from the high-risk groups to the general population. According to data from the various networks of People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLHA) in the State, there are 715 children enrolled in these networks of which 680 are HIV positive. Many of them are orphans whose parents have succumbed to the disease while others are staying with single parents.

But there are many more unidentified positive orphans who may not be getting any care and support and are dying a slow death.

Of the 55,764 identified AIDS cases in India, 2,112 are children. Moreover, 14 per cent of the total HIV cases are children below 14 years.

According to an International Labour Organisation, children of HIV infected parents are heavily discriminated with 35 per cent being denied basic amenities and 17 per cent forced to take up petty jobs to augment their parents' income.

Isolated

"Most of these children are thrown out of school when the authorities there come to know that their parents are HIV positive or have died of AIDS. Even if the parents are alive, the children will be isolated because most of them, along with their parents, are ostracised by their own family and the community," said P. Saroja, president of the Arunodaya PLHA Network, Bangalore.

Ms. Saroja added that some orphans living with caretakers do not have access to Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART) and they would not be getting adequate nutrition. In Bangalore, paediatric doses of ART drugs are not available and children have to make do with reduced doses of the adult drugs. "Even for those children who have access to medication, it is a painful process every day, as children as young as three years may have to take 12 tablets per day," she said.

"The future of most of these orphans is bleak as they do not get much support in terms of food, health and education unless they are identified by networks or non-governmental organisations.

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