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The UNAIDS India team and our cosponsor, UNDP India, were honoured at the 3rd National Transgender Awards, for our steadfast commitment to championing the rights of the transgender community, working towards their access to healthcare and advocating for their empowerment. 

In 2022, the Indian Supreme Court ruled that sex workers were covered by Article 21 of the Constitution which assures every person the right to life. It recognized that sex workers are entitled to equal protection under the law.  

Ratrish Saha is a transgender woman from Kolkata, India. Even with seven years’ work experience, she was anxious about applying for a new job last year. 

At the young age of nine years old, Pawan was told by his doctor that he is HIV positive. He was left in the care of his uncle and his family after both of his parents died from AIDS-related illnesses. “My clothes and cutleries are often segregated, and they would often confine me in certain areas of the house,” Pawan said. “It was difficult because I faced discrimination from my family. I… Read More

Universal screening of HIV and Syphilis among pregnant women is now a policy being implemented by the Government of India.  Preeti Sudan, the newly appointed Health Secretary has directed the national health sector towards the urgent need to strengthen strategies for scaling-up testing services for HIV and Syphilis at both public and private health care centres in the country for early detection and treatment of all found positive. The prevention of parent-to-child… Read More

New law bans discrimination against people living with and affected by HIV in India NEW DELHI, 11 April 2017—UNAIDS welcomes a new law passed by the Indian Parliament providing strong legal protection against HIV-related discrimination.

Ayushi Tripathi is a student at Banaras Hindu University in Varanasi, a city in India’s northern state of Uttar Pradesh. She explains that she comes from a family where talking about sex is taboo. “We never talk about it at home. Even seeing an advertisement about condoms is uncomfortable for my parents,” she said. But nonetheless, she was intent on attending a youth health workshop. This week, she joined 27 other students… Read More

Veena has been living with HIV for more than 15 years and works as a community educator in Bangalore, India. But she still remembers the day she learned of her HIV-positive status.