http://www.dailyindia.com/show/135535.php/HIV-positive-couple-wed-in-Uttar-Pradesh
HIV positive couple wed in Uttar Pradesh
By Vipul Goel
Maharajganj (UP), Apr 22: Setting an example for those who think having a fatal disease is the end of the road, an HIV positive couple in Uttar Pradesh tied the knot in a path-breaking marriage.
The widely attended wedding, presided over by priests performing Hindu rites at a temple in Maharajganj, is considered to go a long way in creating awareness in a country where HIV is still a stigma and its victims socially ostracized and condemned.
Sunil Seth met his bride Suman, who lives in Maharajganj, at the Benaras Hindu University (BHU) Medical Institute when the cupid struck the two.
The couple said they hoped to live normal life despite being HIV positive.
"I met her in Varanasi where she had gone to BHU to get her tests done. From there on, we became friends and even our families came closer. Then we decided to get married," said Seth.
Almost all the families and relatives of the bride and groom were HIV positive, but among the guests were several NGO volunteers and government officials.
"We wish the couple best of luck. They have set an example of being positive. They have shown that being HIV positive is not the end of the world. With hope, and patience, the infected can lead a happy life. This is the state's first such marriage. I do not think it is any less popular than that of Bollywood stars Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai weeding," said Mukta Sharma, Assistant Director, Uttar Pradesh State AIDS Control Society.
According to Government-run National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO), over 5.7 million Indians are infected with AIDS virus, and out of them 475,000 are in Uttar Pradesh.
The rising prevalence of HIV in the country showed that a decade of government efforts had not slowed the virus, which is now estimated to have infected 5.7 million Indians.
According to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, ten percent of the world's HIV-positive population is in India.
According to estimates by the UN Population Division, if trends continue, nearly 49.5 million Indians will die of the disease between 2015 and 2050.