BENGALURU: Karnataka State AIDS Prevention Society (KSAPS) on Thursday clarified that HIV testing is not made mandatory for college students, refuting reports that claimed 7,000 students in the state were tested HIV positive.
KSAPS said the misinformation stemmed from a misinterpretation of data related to the state’s Mobilisation for AIDS Suraksha programme launched to curb the spread of HIV and promote awareness among young people through an eight-month Red Ribbon Awareness Campaign.
The society said around 56,000 people in the state living with HIV remain unidentified, according to National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) estimates. As part of the campaign, people are being encouraged to scan the BreakFreeIndia HIV Self Risk Assessment QR code to assess their risk and voluntarily undergo HIV testing, if required.
KSAPS clarified that the figure of 39,028 refers to HIV positive individuals aged 18 to 35, who have been receiving Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) since 2004, and not the college students infected with HIV.
KSAPS noted that under the HIV and AIDS (Prevention and Control) Act, 2017, HIV testing cannot be made mandatory. The QR code-based self-risk assessment is intended only to help individuals understand their risk and locate the nearest Integrated Counselling and Testing Centre (ICTC) for HIV confirmatory test.