Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare Jagat Prakash Nadda launched the Project Sunrise in Imphal, Manipur.

 The project seeks to improve interventions against human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) among people who inject drugs (PWID) in eight north east States.

Features of Project Sunrise

• It seeks to improve coverage, quality and scale of HIV interventions among PWID, Female Injecting Drug Users (FIDU) and spouses of PWID.

• It is a 5-year programme aimed at complementing the ongoing National AIDS Control Programme (NACP).

• It will be implemented in 20 districts of 8 north eastern states at an estimated cost of 70 crore rupees.

Under the project, needles and syringes will be made available through secondary distributors such as Government health care facilities, preferred healthcare providers, non-traditional outlets and peer volunteers,

• It includes lower threshold strategies to improve Opoid Substitution Therapy (OST), coverage and sensitization workshops for law enforcing officials.

• It also includes HIV intervention in prison settings and will adopt the National Human Resource reduction strategy.

• It will be implemented in a customized flexible approach so as to increase the availability and accessibility to clean needles and syringes.

• Initiatives under the project are to be implemented through the existing system in close co-ordination with State AIDS Control Societies (SACS).