Himachal's Lahaul-Spiti has no HIV, AIDS patient

Shimla, Dec 1 - The remote Lahaul and Spiti district, in Himachal Pradesh has no case of AIDS and HIV, a health official said here Saturday.

There is no case of HIV positive and AIDS reported from Lahaul and Spiti, the only district in the state where the disease has not been reported, Himachal AIDS Control Society director K.C. Dogra told IANS.

The state, with a population of 68 lakh, has 6,481 HIV positive people, of whom 2,065 have AIDS.

The number of cases is highest in Kangra, Hamirpur and Mandi districts.

Kangra has the highest number of 639 AIDS patients, followed by Hamirpur -, Mandi - and Bilaspur -.

The state capital has 65 AIDS patients.

But another remote district, Kinnaur has one AIDS patient and 14 HIV positive.

Dogra said this year 412 new cases of HIV positive were detected in the state, where the first case was reported in 1992.

Interestingly, Lahaul-Spiti has set an example with 1,017 females per 1,000 males in the 0-6 age group -- the highest in the country at the district level -- as per the census for 2011.

The district has also seen a rise in sex ratio in the past 10 years. It has shown an improvement of 114 -- 916 in 2011 against 802 in 2001.

The district, spread over 13,835 sq km, is a place of remote, untouched beauty with just 31,528 people.

The climatic conditions of the area are harsh as much of the land falls under a cold desert where the mercury drops below minus 20 degrees Celsius during winter.