Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2003. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Associated Press - December 1, 2003
Until now, the Indian government has kept to running programs that aim to spread awareness and help the prevention of the disease. But starting April 1, 2004, it will contribute to the treatment of AIDS victims by offering free anti-retroviral drugs at government hospitals.
Under the program, the government will buy generic versions of the drugs from Indian manufacturers at a negotiated low price and distribute it free. In the first year, the government will spend $44 million to cover 100,000 patients in the six worst-hit Indian states.
"We are delighted. The government has come out with additional resources," said Taufiq-ur Rehman, a portfolio manager at the Geneva-based Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.
The announcement came on the eve of the World AIDS Day, amid rallies by college students, social activists and prostitutes in several parts of the country.
Many more events were planned this week "to fight the stigma and discrimination against AIDS victims," organizers said.
About 4.6 million Indians, or less than 1% of the country's adult population, have HIV in India, according to the government, which doesn't count the number of child victims.
A U.S. government report last year predicted the total number of Indians with AIDS, children and adults, could jump to 20-25 million by 2010 - a projection the Indian government rejects.
"We will not only control this disease but eliminate this disease," Health Minister Sushma Swaraj was quoted as saying on Sunday, when she announced the drug program.
But, pharmaceutical industry officials said the success of the government program will depend on its ability to muster financial resources.
Pharmaceutical companies want a cut in duties on raw materials and bulk drugs used in making the anti-retroviral medicine, so that they can lower their prices. Swaraj said she would take up the issue with the finance ministry.
"We can supply at a lower price than the rate we agreed with the Clinton Foundation, provided the government also moves to cut our production costs," said Paresh Chaudhury, a spokesman of Ranbaxy Laboratories (P.RLB).
Ranbaxy is among the four Indian drug companies that supply African countries with low-cost drugs under an arrangement with the Clinton Foundation. That initiative will make HIV-drugs available at a cost of $139 a year, or 38 cents a day in many African countries.
Experts have long argued for a similar initiative for India.
The Global Fund also has pledged $100 million over five years to the Indian government for its anti-AIDS programs. Of this, 40% would be spent on anti-retroviral treatment.
The only other flow of big funds has been from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which has committed $200 million in aid. Most of that money was going to nongovernment organizations working for prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS.
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