THE Balochistan AIDS control programme screened 2,300 inmates at 11 jails in the province. According to the report, 29 out of the 2,300 prisoners were found HIV positive.

Of these 29, 24 prisoners are in central jail in Gadani, four in the Quetta district jail and one in the Loralai district jail.

According to the AIDS control programme, most of the 29 prisoners were drug addicts who used the same syringe multiple times. If the tested HIV positive prisoners remain in these prisons without any treatment, there are high chances that the others would be affected.

Therefore, authorities should transfer them to a health facility for treatment.

Imran Rasheed

Kech

Published in Dawn, July 20th, 2019