'Dip in number of HIV/AIDS cases in armed forces'

There has been a marked decline in number of HIV/AIDS cases in the three armed services, the forces top medical official said Friday.

Nobody has died of AIDS in the last year, Director General, Armed Forces Medical Services, D.P. Joshi told reporters here.

Efforts are also being taken to reduce stress levels of servicemen by setting up helplines and efforts through the human resources department of the services, said Director General Medical Services (Air) A. K. Behl said.

Air Marshal Joshi said the services were also making efforts to preserve blood samples of personnel till they retire and 10 years after that to match in case of any untoward incident like accidents where the body is unrecognizable.

"We want to have a DNA bank. We are still in the beginning. It is a major project. We are working out the modalities," he said.

Apart from this, in an endeavor to provide specialist medical care to its clientele, the Armed Forces Medical Services is moving towards an all specialist corps.

As part of capability development, there has been continuous effort in training the officers and men to enhance their professional knowledge in all specialties and trades keeping with the pace of advancement in healthcare, a press release said.

The Army Medical Corps celebrates its 250th anniversary on Jan 1.