Patna: An HIV outbreak has raised alarms in Bihar.

More than 7,400 people have been found to be HIV-positive in Sitamarhi district, as per official data. More alarmingly, the number includes over 400 kids who have contracted the virus from their parents. ADVERTISEMENT

Explaining the scary development, government hospital doctors said the cases mostly involve families where one or both parents are HIV-positive, resulting in transmission at birth. Despite frequent campaigns, awareness about this life-threatening infection is “severely low”.

“This is not a disease that spreads through coughing; it spreads through blood transfusion or being injected with the same needle. Today, schools are teaching about AIDS and HIV. Bettiah, Motihari, and Muzaffarpur are in a worse situation than we are…

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