APSACS Bags First Place To Curb Spread of HIV in Country

Vijayawada: The Andhra Pradesh State AIDS Control Society (APSACS) has secured first place in the country for controlling the spread of HIV and providing quality healthcare to patients between April and December 2025, announced minister for health Satya Kumar Yadav in a statement on Thursday.

The National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) evaluated states based on 33 indicators with a total score of 141. APSACS secured 107 marks (75.9 per cent), ranking first among all states.

APSACS had earlier ranked seventh during April–December 2024 and slipped to 12th position in the 2024–25 financial year.

The NDA government’s focused efforts to tackle HIV in the state have yielded improved results. APSACS stood second in the first trimester of 2025–26 and climbed to first place by the second and third trimesters.

APSACS has also been conducting regular HIV testing among prisoners in central, district and sub-jails, as well as among inmates of orphanages, women rescued from trafficking, and those in juvenile homes.

As many as 36 NGOs are working with high-risk groups to curb the spread of HIV. De-addiction centres are also being run for those addicted to injectable sedatives.

APSACS project director (in-charge) Ronanki Gopala Krishna said Andhra Pradesh has outperformed other states in reducing person-to-person HIV transmission, achieving a decline of 76.9 per cent between 2010 and 2025, compared to the national average of 48 per cent.