Title - City administration gears up for Red Ribbon Express

VARANASI: The district administration is gearing up to try and break Chennai's record of 80,000 visitors at the Red Ribbon Express (RRE) exhibition.The district magistrate Saurabh Babu, while talking to reporters at Rifle Club on Monday, said the health, education, and transport departments, as well as NGOs have been asked to help mobilise people and especially promote youth participation in this HIV/AIDS awareness programme. He said three meetings at district level had already been conducted by him in this regard and major emphasis is being laid on ensuring participation of youth from high risk groups.The district inspector of school will ensure the participation of students from 203 schools and colleges while 80 degree colleges, universities, polytechnics and other institutions have also been contacted by the officials.The DM said Anganvadi workers, gram pradhans and other public representatives were also cooperating to bring more and more youths at platform nine of Cantonment railway station where the RRE will reach on October 2. He said the regional transport and other departments had been instructed to ensure that the youths working at all brick kilns, petrol pumps and units of unorganised sector, as well as auto and truck drivers are aware of the programme and motivated to participate in it.

The RRE Phase III project of National AIDS Control Organisation was launched at New Delhi in January. The project continues to focus on rural and difficult-to-reach areas with an objective of disseminating the information regarding primary prevention services, developing an understanding about the infection to reduce the stigma and discrimination against people living with HIV/AIDS, and strengthening people's knowledge about the measures to be taken to prevent HIV/AIDS.

The on-board activities planned include interactive exhibition carrying messages on health, HIV and AIDS, sensitization and training, counseling and testing facilities, general health check up, STI treatment and referral service and adolescent/ youth friendly reproductive and sexual health information.

The planned outreach activities will have Red Ribbon Buses carrying a portable version of the train exhibition, counseling and testing services, condom demonstration stalls and also inter-personal communication via local folk media. The RRE will stay at Cantonment railway station till October 4.

The DM said youths and students reaching the RRE exhibition would be allowed to enter the coaches in small batches. He said that the security and crowd regulation plans would be reviewed by him and senior police officers in and around the railway station before the arrival of RRE.