RED RIBBON EXPRESS

RED RIBBON EXPRESS

Red Ribbon Express-Phase 2 flagged off by Sonia Gandhi, chair person of the united progressive alliance from new Delhi’s Safdarjung rail way station on December 1,2009 arrived in the kollam District on Thursday march 2010. Its halt is at the Karunagapally railway station.
The world’s largest social mobilization campaign against HIV/AIDS, the RRE with ten coaches, is an exhibition-cum education train that is scheduled to halt at 152 stations to spread awareness in 141 districts of the country. The train began its Kerala campaign on February 23 at Kasargod. Karunagapally is the last stop of the RRE in its Kerala Campaign. In addition to Kasargod, the RRE Campaigned at Kannur,Tirur,Palakkad,Thrissur,Aluva,Ernakulam south and Kayamkulam. It halted for two days at each station. The Kerala Campaign is co-ordinated by the Kerala State AIDS control society.
The RRE is an idea developed by the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation; the National AIDS control organization and the Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan. The Campaign will promote safe behavioral practices and fight the stigma and discrimination against people living with HIV. It also aims at enhancing people’s understanding of the disease.
The train will have Doctors, volunteers, counselors and folk artistes. Two life line bases are also travelling with the train and n there these will be used to take the campaign to the interior areas of district inside the train there will be counseling facility for people.
Training on AIDS control and prevention would be imparted to people’s representatives, industrial workers, youth, government employees, representatives of parents and teachers .
The RRE campaign would be complemented through street plays and cultural programmes. Volunteers travelling in the train will travel to areas far from the station to engage in outdoor counseling.
Prof: John Kurakar