Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore (TU/CN)

Mangalore, Nov 18: ‘Aids Awareness Week-2008’, organized by Dr MV Shetty College of Social Work in association with Corporation Bank, was inaugurated at the Zilla Panchayat Meeting Hall on Monday November 17.

Speaking after inaugurating the week, P Shivashankar, chief executive officer, zilla panchayat (ZP), said such awareness programmes should be conducted to stem the spread of the AIDS disease. It is uncontrollable once after it has affected 2.5 per cent of the population, he said.

‘Eradication of AIDS is not only the duty of the health department, but every government department has a social responsibility in this matter. Local authorities should conduct awareness programmes’, said Shivashankar.

The theme of the awareness campaign is ‘Stop AIDS: Keep the Promise—Leadership’. According to the organizers, the objective of the programme is to improve the level of awareness on HIV/AIDS among all sections of society and to encourage people to take responsible decisions.

K P Sucharita Shetty, president, ZP, presided over the function. Dr Divyanjali Shetty, Prakash Hebbar D, Carol D’Souza, Suma S Rai, and Dr Bimal Kanta Nayak, were present on the occasion.