Port Blair, Nov. 30: World AIDS Day is observed on December 1 every year. It is a day of solidarity for people around the world who are affected by HIV. 'Equalize' is the theme to observe World AIDS Day 2022. To keep everyone safe, to protect everyone's health, we need to Equalize. To mark the day, a rally of school and college students will be held tomorrow (Dec.1) at 7.30 am from Netaji Stadium. More than 500 students are expected to take part in the rally. Shri Keshav Chandra, IAS, Chief Secretary, A&N Administration will be the chief guest and flag off the rally at 7.30 am from Netaji Stadium. Officials from Health and various Departments will also grace the occasion. The rally will pass through Clock Tower, Model School, Bengali Club, Co-operative Bank and culminate at Dr. B. R. Ambedkar Auditorium, PBMC.

At Dr. B. R. Ambedkar Auditorium, folk performance with the message on HIV & AIDS will be presented by Balakrishna Nritya Academy and Dance Nritya Academy followed by prize distribution of various competitions held as part of the day. Shri Nikhil Kumar, IAS, Commissioner-cum-Secretary (Health) will be the chief guest for the prize distribution function while Shri Arjun Sharma, IAS, Secretary (Health) will be the guest of honour.

The month-long activities conducted as part of World AIDS Day 2022 observance are Inter- School Drawing/Painting competition; State level Red Ribbon Club (RRC) Quiz Competition for the youth of Colleges and Youth Clubs. The folk performance with the message on HIV & AIDS began from on Nov.29. 60 folk performances will be performed by Balakrishna Nritya Academy, Dance Nritya Academy and Jhumurr (Shastriya - Lok) Nrityangan in municipal and rural areas of South Andaman District. The folk team will be accompanied by Information Education and Communication (lEC) Van for disseminating audio messages on HIV & AIDS throughout its route.