Bathinda, September 9
Two deaths due to AIDS in a family of Kothe Guru Ke village of this district took place in the past four months. The death of another member of the same family is also suspected to be due to AIDS.
The district health authorities have decided to organise medical check-up camps at the village and take up the issue with the Deputy Commissioner. It has also been decided to take adequate steps to check the spread of the disease.
Information gathered by TNS revealed that Kulwant Singh (30) (name changed), a truck driver, his wife (28) and his son (5) died in four months.
Kulwant Singh and his son were tested HIV positive at different hospitals where they were undergoing treatment secretly. Whether the wife, who died on Saturday was also HIV (positive) has been a mystery, official sources said.
Dr S.K. Goyal, Civil Surgeon, Bathinda, said a team of doctors which visited the village could not collect any evidence establishing that the wife of Kulwant Singh was HIV positive. He said she had also been getting treatment from a private hospital.
He said it was alarming and the health authorities were trying to motivate kin of the deceased to undergo tests of detect HIV infection. He added that 57 cases of HIV infection had been identified in the district. A case of HIV positive was detected in July when the blood of a donor was tested at the Blood Bank here.
He said HIV-test kits had reached the local civil hospital to detect cases of HIV positive in the area.
