The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Mowgli to adorn ART centres

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Saturday, Mar 15, 2008
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Mowgli to adorn ART centres

P. Sujatha Varma

As a part of ‘Bala Sahayog’ programme, APSACS to open them

Child-friendly: Cartoon characters Mowgli and Ballu from ‘The Jungle Book’

VIJAYAWADA: The Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART) centres across the State are all set to go child-friendly. The move is aimed at enticing HIV-affected children to these centres without much problem.

As a part of its ‘Bala Sahayog’ programme launched in April last year, the Andhra Pradesh State AIDS Control Society (APSACS) has decided to open enchanting ART centres. Colourful paintings of the lovable feral child Mowgli, the cartoon character from Rudyard Kipling’s Jungle Book who crawled his way into the hearts of millions of his fans, will adorn the walls of the ART centres, which will now include a separate play area also.

“We have opened one such centre at Sangareddy and intend to replicate it in all districts. A uniform pattern of colour schemes will be used to make the place eye-catching,” says APSACS Project Director Ashok Kumar.

With a hope that its child-centric approach will draw more number of HIV +ve children into the ART fold, the Society also plans to train paediatricians across the State for identification of positive children. The Society will also put in place a system that will prevent discrimination of the affected children besides taking care of their other needs.

“Unlike in the past when HIV patients were more afraid of the social stigma and discrimination than the disease itself, we’ve not just brought down the stigma, but also put in place an effective medical system that takes care of all the needs of the affected persons,” asserts Mr. Ashok Kumar.

Centres

The society also plans to set up a drop-in centre in every district. At the moment, there are only eight such centres. The project will be supported partly by the Centre and partly by the State government.

He says the fact that the society has brought under its fold a large number of people who had tested positive was in itself an accomplishment.

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