Saturday, January 30, 2010

HIV kids need better nutrition, education

Nutrition, education and property rights. That's what children who are HIV positive demand from society. Better access to medical

treatment and easy access to nutrition and continuation of education are among their primary demands.

After a public hearing on `Child rights -- issues and entitlements of the orphan and vulnerable children affected/infected by HIV/ AIDS', Shantha Sinha, chairperson, National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), said four things topped their list of demands. "A comprehensive nutrition programme is needed. Continuation of education is a problem for most because of social stigma," she said.

The question of property rights is another bane for these children because many are thrown out of their homes with even siblings distancing themselves. "This is fracturing families. Also, in several cases, there are no parents and children have to take care of the family. There are no rules on these cases ought to be handled," she added.

The national commission is also mulling over a comprehensive child health policy and on conducting such public hearing at the district level. These have been held in Andhra Pradesh, Manipur and Tamil Nadu. A pilot hearing in Udupi, where the incidence of HIV/AIDS affected children is very high, is being considered.

Both the national and state commissions were unanimous in saying the biggest problem was that there was no data on children affected by HIV/AIDS. However, it's estimated there are about 55,000 children orphaned due to AIDS or other reasons in just three districts of Belgaum, Bagalkot and Bellary.

Source : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/HIV-kids-need-better-nutrition-education/articleshow/5514931.cms

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