HIV-positive | Pakistan

LAHORE: The Central Jail Rawalpindi, commonly known as Adiala Jail, has reported a massive outbreak of HIV-positive cases, with 148 infected inmates — the highest number recorded in any jail of province so far. This alarming situation has exposed serious lapses on the part of the Prisons Department and the Punjab Aids Control Programme (PACP). Adiala has been in the headlines lately as former PM Imran Khan is also incarcerated there. However, it must be kept in mind that Mr Khan is kept in isolation and is not allowed to mingle with other inmates. The prison is currently very overcrowded as well, housing 4,337 prisoners against its authorised capacity of 1,994. PACP report reveals there are 645 infected individuals in Punjab’s 43 prisons; some of them are already receiving anti-retroviral therapy The presence of such a large number of HIV-infected prisoners poses a grave risk to the health and lives of other inmates if immediate measures are not taken to curb the transmission of the virus. Medical experts exp...