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Dear Vinod Bhanu,

I have a suggestion towards preventive care with regard to the deaf population in the country. It is estimated that in India there are more than 3% deaf. They are the silent witness to the spread of HIV/AIDS. They need to be educated about HIV virus as a preventive measure. Due to Speech and hearing impairment they use a different mode of communication. They have Sign language as their mode of communication and an estimated 2% of them use it. In India, even though there are no head counts about the users of sign language, all the deaf in India do know and use Indian Sign Language (ISL). ISL is the mother tongue of the Deaf and other languages are not understood by them and are not accepted for communication, Hence it is important that ISL is used in creating awareness among the deaf regarding HIV/AIDS or any other communicable diseases. Also, it is imperative that we develop presentations/awareness materials in ISL to prevent HIV/AIDS among the deaf community and the society.

P. J. Mathew Martin,
Ali Yavar Jung National Institute for the Hearing Handicapped,
Mumbai