2020 - India HIV/AIDS Alliance

Helping in the betterment of a family (Jul 8, 2020)

Rakesh (name changed) is a six years old boy living in Surendranagar (Gujarat), with his grandfather who is 70 years old and is unable to carry out any physical activity. Savitriben is Rakesh’s grandmother who is almost the same age as her husban

Learning to celebrate effeminacy (Jul 2, 2020)

My name is Rohan Mathews and I am the Clinic Manager for the Samarth programme of Alliance India in Bangalore. I identify myself as a gender-fluid, pansexual person. I have been working with Samarth since November 2019. I would like to share the st

The hero in us (Jul 1, 2020)

Bhikhabhai Raval is differently-abled person due to childhood polio, now 40 years old, he is living with HIV. For the past six years, he has been working as an Outreach Worker (ORW) in Patan NP+(Gujarat), which is a District Level Network of HIV P

Recovery from drugs and finding my family again (Jun 30, 2020)

My name is Rajkumar Singh and I live in Dehradun with my wife and two children. I used to be dependent on drugs. I started taking drugs from the age of 14. I began injecting drugs along with my friends just for fun. But as time passed, it became a

Launching the #Faith4HarmReduction PSA– Commemorating the Global Day of Action and the Support Don’t Punish Campaign in times of COVID-19 (Jun 26, 2020)

In India, it is estimated that there are about 8,50,000 people who inject drugs (PWID) as per the study “Magnitude of Substance Use in India” commissioned by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (2019). High numbers of PWID are estimat

Emergencies demand more dedicated efforts (Jun 22, 2020)

My name is Dipak Chakraborty and I am one of the field mobilizers of the Samarth project presently operational in Hooghly as well as Howrah districts of West Bengal. I have been the Samarth field mobilizer for both phases I and II of the Samarth p

COVID-19 exists and cyclone hasn’t stopped us (Jun 18, 2020)

“The more we get together, the happier we’ll be”- Nirupama (name changed) learned this in school while she was 12 years old. Today after 10 years she could actually realize the true meaning of these words. While sitting in a temporary shelter, s

Hoping for a better life (Jun 17, 2020)

I am Kanchan Devi, 35 year old married woman living with HIV. I live in the Hajipur district of Bihar. My husband is a driver by profession and we are blessed with four children; three sons and a daughter. Five years ago, my husband and I were diag

We will reach you… (Jun 12, 2020)

“Hurry up Saraswati! It is almost 1 o’clock. If we cannot reach there within an hour we might get stuck in rain”, Joytikona shouted. Saraswati rode her bike as fast as she could, but the roads were blocked with uprooted trees and pieces of broke

People who use drugs – Somewhere between lockdown and unlockdown (Jun 12, 2020)

“People who use drugs and lock-ups” are more often than not discussed in conjunction in most parts of the world. This has little to do with the COVID-19 pandemic ‘per se’, but the fact that people who use drugs – including women who use drugs

Feelings of a community representative during the COVID-19 induced lockdown (Jun 11, 2020)

It was all of a sudden when we came to know on 23rd March 2020 that from next the morning- “You can’t go out, you can’t have access to public transport, you need to stay home without connecting with any outside person, you canR

From Opioid Dependent to being Atmanirbhar (Self- Reliant) – An Inspiring Story Of Women Who Use Drugs in Kapurthala (Jun 5, 2020)

Ameena (name changed) is a 34 year old woman who is the sole earning member of her family. She has three young children and works as a daily wage worker in the agricultural sector with income depending on the agricultural seasonal needs. She has n

Changing HIV to “Human Intelligence Victory” (Jun 5, 2020)

Allapuzha District Network of People Living with HIV (ADNP+) is a community-based organization working for the wellbeing of People Living with HIV/AIDS. Girija is working as Project Coordinator with Vihaan programme of Alliance India and is associa

Between a Rock and a Hard Place (Jun 3, 2020)

Dear Paramjit, It has taken me a few days to put my thoughts together and write to you. I apologize for the delay in communicating. It’s just that sometimes, you are so overwhelmed by an experience that it isn’t simple to put your feelings into w

International Sex Workers’ Day – 2020 (Jun 2, 2020)

On 2 June 1975, approximately 100 sex workers occupied Saint-Nizier Church in Lyon, France, to express their anger about their criminalized and exploitative living conditions. On 10 June at 5 o’clock, the Church was brutally raided by police

Working in the COVID-19 response call centre: Experience of a Vihaan field worker (May 28, 2020)

Ashok at the COVID-19 response centre Ashok is working as Project Coordinator in Vihaan Care and Support Centre in Bijapur (Karnataka). He has completed his masters in social work in 2010 and from the last 10 years, he has been involved in various

YUVA: The power to change (May 27, 2020)

Members of YUVA group The Network of Maharashtra People with HIV (NMP+) is a partner of Alliance India’s Vihaan Programme since 2013. NMP+ had established a youth forum, YUVA, in 2016 for youth and young people living with HIV from Maharashtra. YU

Alliance India’s COVID-19 Response: Ensuring essential gender-sensitive harm reduction services for women who use drugs in Manipur (May 26, 2020)

Essentials kept for distribution maintaining social distancing According to the World Drug Report 2019, globally, some 35 million people, up from an earlier estimate of 30.5 million reported in 2016, are affected by drug use disorders and require t

Women in Sex Work – The community at the heart of Alliance India’s COVID-19 Response (May 22, 2020)

Ration being distributed to the community member The term “marginalized” refers to a person, group, or concept treated as insignificant or peripheral. What is typically marginalized groups like women in sex work, LGBTQ groups, people living with

Initiating ‘Buddy Group’ system for efficiency in serving people on antiretroviral treatment (May 22, 2020)

File Photo for representation purpose only As the saying goes, a small group of thoughtful and committed citizens can change the world. Alliance India’s Vihaan programme has been engaging community volunteers for additional support during the ongo

Life of a harm reduction field worker in the times of COVID-19 (May 21, 2020)

Ajay Sahini with ration for distribution My name is Jayanta Kumar Singh. I have been working for the health and human rights of people who use drugs for the past 18 years. Currently, I am part of Alliance India’s Hridaya project and based in Luckn

“Where there’s a will, there’s a way” (May 21, 2020)

PLHIV community member being provided with ART medication The country is presently going through the most unexpected challenge ever posed to humanity, and to compound matters, a countrywide lockdown has been announced to ensure social distancing in

‘Not a tomboy or not a lesbian but a transman’ (May 19, 2020)

Shyam Ghosh during Kolkata Rainbow Pride Walk My preferred name is Shyam Ghosh. I identify myself as a 33 years old transman and today I want to share with you, my journey of transition from Shampa to Shyam. I hail from a conservative upper middle-

Provision of harm reduction service in the lockup of a police station (May 15, 2020)

Kishorchand (Bungo) providing harm reduction service I am Kishorchand (Bungo), the state coordinator for the Drug User Forum of Manipur supported through the Harm Reduction programme of Alliance India. On the evening of 1st May 2020, I had just com

Leaving no stone unturned to deliver urgent relief for transgender and hijra communities (May 14, 2020)

With support from the Commissioner of Police, East Delhi 30 community members receive dry ration In their hour of need, the transgender and hijra communities in and around Noida, Uttar Pradesh received urgent relief measures and encouragement from

“The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change”-Wave of change (May 12, 2020)

Ration distribution for community members by TG CSC Due to COVID-19 pandemic, the entire nation has been under lockdown since 23 March 2020. As per the government guidelines, both at the center and state level, citizens were asked to stay at home t

In India’s Chennai, a Community of People Who Use Drugs are Scripting an Inspiring Story during Lockdown (May 11, 2020)

OST medicines being distributed to community members in Chennai. Almost half of Tamil Nadu’s total COVID-19 cases are from the state capital Chennai alone, which is also the most populous district of the state’s 37 districts. The state government

Alliance India Reopens Today (May 4, 2020)

Alliance India announces the opening of its offices today with all precautions in place. We are proud to stand in solidarity with the thousands of field workers and partners across the country who continue their relentless efforts to ensure that n

Alliance India’s harm reduction programme ensures the welfare of women who use drugs registered with our programme in Kapurthala, Punjab (May 3, 2020)

Women are provided with access to needles and syringes The women-centric harm reduction site at the Kapurthala Civil Hospital, Punjab since the start of the lockdown had initiated the implementation of take-home doses of Opioid Substitution Therapy

They keep the wheels turning (Apr 29, 2020)

Meet Our Outreach Workers At The Forefront of COVID-19 Response Shahid on his way to deliver ART drugs Shahid, an outreach worker in Kutchh district of Gujarat went door-to-door delivering antiretroviral (ART) drugs to 196 people living with HIV (P

A new mother living with HIV receives life-saving medication (Apr 27, 2020)

Seema with her new born child. Image blurred to conceal her true identity. Seema (name changed) recently gave birth to a healthy baby boy, a rare moment of joy for the family. The family is reeling under the lockdown as their financial condition ha

Breaking the chain of sexual oppression in the times of COVID-19 (Apr 23, 2020)

Anya with Samarth staff in the hospital. Rohan Mathews works as Clinic Manager for the Samarth programme of Alliance India in Bangalore. He identifies himself as a gender-fluid, pansexual person. He has been working with Samarth since November 2019

Ensuring health, nutrition and justice for marginalised women and girls in the COVID-19 response (Apr 22, 2020)

Ration being distributed at Sunder Nagari, New Delhi with support from Alliance India and United Religions Initiative (URI). In India out of the 8, 50,000 people who inject drugs (PWID), more than 80% of them were found to be sexually active with t

Alliance India’s COVID-19 Response: Ensuring HIV services for the key population during the lockdown period (Apr 17, 2020)

Recently, Alliance India’s Samarth programme responded to an urgent situation and saved a person from a tragic fate. Samarth is a community-led programme on HIV screening and treatment linkage for men who have sex with men (MSM) and the transgend