BENGALURU: Around 20km from Magadi Road is a cluster of decrepit tenements where many HIV patients and their families reside. Tucked away in a nowhere land, the Rajiv Gandhi Housing Colony has 165 homes built by the government for PLHIVs (People Living with HIV). According to official estimates, 116 families have occupied the homes – far away from rest of the world. The only connection to the outside world are kuccha and narrow roads, where even BMTC buses do not ply.
For people with HIV, residing in the vicinity of public health institutions makes it easier to access life-saving antiretroviral therapy and reduces the chances of not showing up for follow-up – a crucial factor in the battle against HIV. The patients have to visit ART (antiretroviral) centres to get their monthly refill of medicines. Those in the Rajiv Gandhi Colony, however, cannot even get to the main road if they do not have two-wheelers and are forced to walk for any small and big needs. Coming to the ART centres in KC General Hospital, Malleswaram and Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital, Shivajinagar is a big task, as they have to travel a good 40-50km that easily takes two hours or more.
Prabha, an HIV patient, told CE, “There are no buses here. I have to leave home at 6 am to reach KC General Hospital by 9 am. It is very difficult to commute. There are no electricity meters for the houses provided in the colony. Till recently, we had water problems. Travelling after dusk is an even bigger challenge.”
True to these problems, when CE visited the colony on Monday, it was found that one has to pass through a village and commute on a rundown path to get to the colony. The place is not known even to most nearby villagers. After a lot of enquiries, when one gets there, he/she is greeted by a slum right at the entrance. After passing through the slum, one finally gets to the colony, a place that looks as if it has been shunned by the city. Even the houses haven't come free of cost to the patients. They have each paid Rs 42,000 to get their home, Rs 30,000 for the home, Rs 10,000 for the plastering and Rs 2,000 for the Rajiv Gandhi Housing Corporation officials to commute to-and-fro, the residents claim.
Thygaraja DT, president, Karnataka Network of Positive People, a Community-Based Organisation with 50,000 PLHIVs state-wide, said, “The colony was built in 2010 but the families couldn’t occupy the houses until 2016-17. There was no land available in Bengaluru to build houses. That is why, it was built in such a remote area. We were assured buses will ply at least three times a day there, at 7.45 am, 11.30am and 11.45am, but till now it has not happened. For now they are getting electricity without meters. The KEB said they will install these soon.”
Gopi, 55, another HIV patient, used to work in the city for a paltry monthly sum of Rs 3,000 a month. His wife is also a PLHIV but a homemaker. He was forced to leave the job and resort to odd jobs like carpentry, plumbing and electrician’s work because of lack of connectivity to the colony. “Those who have two-wheelers go till the main road and then catch a bus and go to the city but I have to walk for everything. In Kerala and Tamil Nadu, PLHIVs get pension. The Karnataka government doesn’t give us anything. For commute in Bengaluru city, they give us Rs 40 for daily bus travel. How can we commute with this paltry sum? They are supposed to give Rs 700 for HIV-affected children monthly, but the money comes months after our children have joined school,” he said.
HIV children hesitant to reveal their place of stay
Thyagaraj said: PLHIVs are given Rs 80 daily bus pass for commute in Bangalore Urban District. “Every 15 days the money worth the daily bus pass is deposited in their bank accounts. The health department spends Rs 1 crore annually for the travel expenses of the community across the state. For other areas, they are given money based on the local expenses. We tried our best to get pension for HIV patients but there is no political will to implement the same.”
The children are hesitant to reveal where they reside lest their friends know their status. Some of them study in a government school some distance away and there is no bus facility. “The last time, the principal saw something in the media about the colony, I had to personally go and explain my son’s condition. Even if we talk about our problems, we are at the risk of being identified and stigmatised,” a resident of the colony said requesting anonymity.
Shamla Iqbal, director, Karnataka State AIDS Prevention Society, said: “We have established link ART centres for those who live in far-flung areas. I have never heard of this colony. I will look into the matter.”
The Bengaluru Deputy Commissioner BM Vijay Shankar oversees allotment of houses in the Rajiv Gandhi Housing Colony. City Express could not get comments from Housing Minister UT Khader or Bengaluru DC on why the government chose to build houses in a remote area for people living with a life-long health condition away from health centres.
(Names of all patients have been changed to protect identity. Location of the colony too has not been revealed for the same reason)