The decision has been taken in view of problems faced by HIV positive patients in remote areas who have to travel miles to reach a nodal ART centre located in the state-run hospital for medicinal needs.

Currently, there are five nodal ART centres in the state — School of Tropical Medicine, North Bengal Medical College and Hospital, Burdwan Medical College, Malda District Hospital and RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. Two other new nodal centres at M R Bangur Hospital and Islampur sub-divisional hospital are expected to come up by the end of this year.

According to WBSACS, by the end of this month, two ART centres are supposed to come up at Raghunathpur in Purulia and Murshidabad.

The new ART centres would now allow the HIV patients residing close to these areas to collect their dose of HIV medicines without much hassle.

The project is being funded by the National Aids Prevention Control Society (NACO).

The WBSACS also aims to set up Integrated Counselling and Testing Centres at all the block primary healthcare centres in the state.

Initially, the training centres would be set up in 114 blocks in districts like North Dinajpur, Darjeeling, Burdwan and Bankura, where AIDS cases have been increasing.

In areas like Kharibari, Jhum Jhumi BPHC of Darjeeling, Shindipal BPHC of Birbhum and Hilly, Kumarganj BPHC of Dakshin Dinajpur, such testing centres are expected to become operational by next year.