With HIV having affected a lot of people in North Eastern (NE) region, particularly in the state of Manipur where highest rate of infected are already reported in India, there are many women and children who have acquired the infection or facing high risk due to unprotected sex behavior among spouses.

As we already knew, in Manipur, it is mainly among the intravenous drug users (IDU) community which is spreading or already affected and so far effective steps have been already taken up. If not all but most of them are under controlled and decreasing somehow or taking effect.

Now the point is though this section of community is already controlled or taking effect, what about the spouses, specially the women and children of those already affected. In Manipur five years back officially the number of affected among women is 1000 now it is increasing with the numbers already reached 4000 which is somehow alarming.

In India, when we deal with the spreading of HIV among women and from them to others, it is common that the main areas or factors are the commercial sex workers as IDU are not that common among women. With these concepts or happenings, what about the women in North-East region, particularly in the state of Manipur where the context is different.

In our society, commercial sex workers say in the form of red light area and likewise are not common form though some other forms do exists. So it is transparent, the way HIV/AIDS spreading among women and from them to others is somewhat slightly different from the rest of the country.

One good example is that elders or guardians of IDU or likewise are in the concept of if your sons or spouses indulged in any sort of anti-social stuffs of this kind, their good advice is find a girl and get him married, this completely misconception leads to the problem.

Most of the women which are already affected or likely to affect are in the age group of 20 to late 30's and at this stage their sexual urge is very high, also majority of them belong to low income groups. With their spouses or husband already dead or completely lost into drugs, they are left with no other options but to come out.

Frustrated, depressed, biologically unsatisfied and financially in great needs, with not much to start with, they started looking for easy ways, doing cheap things to fulfilled or satisfied their needs. Besides all these problems and constraints they are also bound to social and cultural limitations. Even if they tried to start something normally, some ways either earning or to fulfill their needs, they just can't do it due to these boundaries.

Naturally to overcome these dilemma, they have become soft target mainly in the form of sexual exploitation or rather they started looking for easy target, sometimes even re-marriage, extra marital affairs etc.

These are some of the main factor of spreading HIV/AIDS among our society. At this point who is the loser, all of us, our whole society? With these circumstances, completely lost, they started ignoring their children and their own well being or health.

It is undeniable fact universally women and children are the basis of a society, children are considered pillars or building block of a society and to mould them it is the duty of their spouses especially their mothers.

How can a society progress if these children are not moving in the right direction or completely ignored or misguided, the future is not safe at all.

Now we all have seen, heard or experienced many programmes and awareness on HIV/AIDS specially by NGOs and government agencies and it is taking effect in general. But so far if not all we haven't come across or heard of a complete separate programme specially designed for women and children.

It is high time we need to emphasize to implement a complete separate strategy for women and children as they need more extra care and to overcome obstacles they are facing, their unwillingness to reach these programmes due to social stigma, personal hesitation and many other constraints being a woman.

As usual let me wind up for now with these few lines from legendary American singer/poet late Jim Morrison of the rock band "The Doors".

"Awake! Shake dreams from your hairs.
My pretty one, sweet one.
Choose the day;
choose the sign of the day, the day's divinity".