Saitual becomes first Mizoram district to achieve ‘Surakshit’ HIV status

Saitual has become the first district in Mizoram to achieve the ‘Surakshit’ status under the National AIDS Control Organisation’s (NACO) Mobilisation AIDS Suraksha (MAS) campaign, meeting all three targets of the globally recognised 95-95-95 HIV control strategy, an official release said on September 8.

The 95-95-95 strategy aims to ensure that 95 per cent of people living with HIV know their status, 95 per cent of those diagnosed receive antiretroviral therapy (ART), and 95 per cent of those on treatment achieve viral load suppression.

Under the MAS campaign, districts are classified as ‘Sangharshee’ if they achieve none or only one of the three targets, ‘Saksham’ if they achieve two and ‘Surakshit’ if they meet all three. A ‘Surakshit+’ status is awarded to districts reporting zero mother-to-child transmission of HIV.

The campaign, aimed at breaking the chain of HIV transmission, has been implemented intensively across Mizoram since February, with district-level progress regularly reviewed under the leadership of Deputy Commissioners.

According to the August assessment, Saitual met all three benchmarks, making it the first and only district in Mizoram to achieve ‘Surakshit’ status so far.

Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr Zothanpari Chhakchhuak attributed the achievement to the support of Saitual Deputy Commissioner Srinivas Sadi and sustained cooperation from NGOs, churches and community leaders.

She said their participation had helped expand HIV testing and awareness activities across the district.

Chhakchhuak stressed that maintaining the achievement would require continued efforts to encourage more people to undergo HIV testing and know their status. She also urged people living with HIV to adhere regularly to ART, saying early detection and sustained treatment would be crucial to preventing further transmission.

According to the Mizoram State AIDS Control Society (MSACS), 34,930 HIV-positive cases have been detected in the state since October 1990, when the first case was reported. As many as 6,439 people have died of the disease till July this year.

The society said 29,217 patients have registered for ART, of whom 26,382 have started receiving the therapy.