World AIDS Day 2025: How India Is Advancing the HIV Fight And Where It Still Falls Short

On World AIDS Day 2025, India stands at a defining moment in its HIV response, one marked by extraordinary medical progress but also by persistent gaps that threaten the goal of zero new infections. As

Dr. N. Kumarasamy, Vice President, AIDS Society of India and Chief & Director, VHS Infectious Diseases Medical Centre, Voluntary Health Services, Chennai, points out, “HIV continues to be a major public health concern… Though HIV is now a chronic illness that can be managed with efficient antiretroviralprep therapy, there are still gaps in early detection, prevention, and treatment.”The global burden remains significant. As Dr. Kumarasamy highlights, “United Nation estimate 40.8 million persons are living with HIV globally and among them 25,44,000 are in India.” Even in 2024, the virus’s spread shows no signs of slowing, with “1.3 million new infections worldwide and India has reported 68,450 newly infected persons.” Yet the transformation in patient outcomes has been remarkable. With potent antiretroviral therapy (ART), “persons with HIV who have access to these medications never fall sick of AIDS anymore,” and those who achieve viral suppression now enjoy life expectancies “almost like persons who don’t have HIV.”

This shift has translated into a dramatic improvement in the lived experience of patients. Individuals with HIV can pursue careers, relationships, long-term plans and parenthood—realities that were once out of reach. New innovations add further momentum: “the introduction of a long-acting injectable antiviral medicine has opened new possibilities for HIV prevention,” especially within pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP).Despite this, India’s biggest challenge remains prevention. Dr. Kumarasamy underscores a key missing link: “India is yet to implement pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) through the National program, which is a gap.” While the country supplies “92% of the antiretroviral medications prescribed globally,” domestic PrEP rollout has lagged. Closing this gap is essential to achieving the national goal of zero new infections.

Funding sustainability is another pressure point. Globally, the old model of donor-driven financing is waning. Yet Dr. Kumarasamy notes that “twenty-five of the 60 low- and middle-income countries have found ways to increase HIV spending from domestic resources into 2026,” signalling a shift to nationally owned, resilient HIV programmes. India has already taken significant steps in this direction.The stakes are clear. The HIV response has already “saved 26.9 million lives worldwide.” According to UNAIDS, embracing new tools, technologies and prevention strategies—including widespread PrEP—could not only end AIDS as a public health threat but also reduce global response costs by “around US$ 7 billion.”On this World AIDS Day, India’s path forward is evident: strengthen prevention, secure sustainable funding, and expand access to innovations that bring the world closer to zero new infections.