The Tripura government on Wednesday dismissed media reports suggesting an HIV outbreak in the state, clarifying that the figures cited were cumulative data from April 2007 to May 2024, not reflective of recent or current statistics.
The clarification came after a senior official from the Tripura State AIDS Control Society (TSACS) reported 47 student deaths due to HIV and 828 students testing HIV-positive in Tripura. “We have so far registered 828 students who are HIV-positive. Out of them, 572 students are still alive, and we have lost 47 people to the infection. Many of the students have migrated out of Tripura for higher studies in prestigious institutions across the country,” the TSACS official stated earlier this month.
The Health & Family Welfare Department of Tripura addressed the misleading nature of the report via a message on the social media platform X, stating, “It is reported that Tripura has 828 students registered as HIV positive and 47 of them died. This report is misleading because the total figures are cumulative from April 2007 to May 2024. Please note it as official clarification from Govt of Tripura.”
The state government emphasized that the numbers represent a cumulative count of cases over 17 years from April 2007, not an indication of a recent surge in HIV cases.
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