India's first Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) treatment centre and clinic for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) community was inaugurated by the Humsafar Trust in Mumbai. Hamsafar Trust, a support group for gay men, male sex workers and transgenders, has been working for the past 20 years, creating awareness about HIV.
The clinic will provide free counselling and Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART) used to treat the infection or delay the progression process, Hindustan Times reported. The centre will be opened for all and serve as a "one-stop centre for counselling, detention and treatment of HIV".
“Until now we would get testing done for the community members at our centre. If tested positive for the disease, they would be asked to go to Sion Hospital, but there was a huge dropout (rate) there. Because of how the community is perceived outside, a lot of these people wouldn’t seek treatment,” said Ashok Row Kavi, founder chairperson of Humsafar Trust.