According to data presented by the states in the Rajya Sabha, India disposed of over 17.4 lakh units of blood components in 2025. This fact was noted against the backdrop of blood collection reaching a record high of 1.58 crore units, which highlights persistent difficulties in managing blood stocks, even with a stable increase in the number of donors.
The Kawadiya pilgrimage, which is associated with deep faith, is accompanied by difficulties such as long-distance walking. Carrying the Kawada on the shoulders, foot calluses, general fatigue, and the distant journey create serious challenges. In this regard, a special medical camp has been set up in Saharanpur, which offers not only medication and bandaging but also massage for tired feet using special machines. There are twenty-one such machines installed.
The main problem that arises from constant walking with the Kawada affects the legs. To solve this problem, machines for foot massage and Thai massage are placed at the camp. Pilgrims stop here during their journey, take off their shoes, rest for some time, after which leg massage using machines begins. Manual massage is also provided if necessary. Thus, if the legs indicate an inability to continue moving, the camp first offers a short rest, and then they can proceed further.
This facility is not just a massage center. A team of six doctors works at the camp, providing primary care. If a pilgrim has an injury, a foot callus, rash, or severe pain, there is a system for first aid provision here. Separate supplies are available for bandaging and applying ointments. Medicines and oils are available for pain relief, necessary preparations for treating rashes, and special oils for massage. This means that a pilgrim can come here with tired legs and leave feeling relieved.
According to the camp chairman, Dipak Khed, the service to pilgrims has been ongoing for twenty years. Last year, six massage machines were installed here, and this year the number has been increased to twenty-one. The needs of people arriving for the Kawad Yatra change every year. Although food is usually provided in most camps, rest and relief for the legs after continuous walking are no less important. It was with this thought that the massage service was expanded this year.
Furthermore, two large charging stations for mobile phones are equipped in the camp. Nowadays, a journey seems incomplete without a phone, which people use to communicate with relatives, check location, take photos and videos, and contact in case of need. However, in such a long journey, it is difficult to predict when a mobile phone battery will run out. These stations allow about five hundred to six hundred phones to be charged simultaneously. Thus, a pilgrim can rest, get a foot massage, and charge their mobile phone at the same time.
Camp operators note that it is currently the rainy season, and it is not always convenient for everyone to carry a power bank or extra battery. Therefore, charging stations have been created. A pilgrim can stop for ten, twenty, or fifty minutes to charge their phone and then continue their journey. Camps are established all along the Kawad Yatra route: some provide food, some water, some resting places. However, this camp in Saharanpur has raised the level of service even higher. Here, they strive to ensure that a pilgrim who arrives tired is not simply sent away with food; their leg pain should be reduced, calluses bandaged, rashes treated with medicine, pain eliminated through treatment, and if the phone battery dies, it should be charged.
Bihar Health Minister Nishant Kumar has been demonstrating active engagement recently. On Friday, he visited the prestigious state hospital IGIMS in Patna for an inspection. However, events that unfolded during this visit attracted significant public attention.
During the tour, one journalist asked the minister about his marriage, after which Kumar simply smiled and continued on his way. The topic of his wedding is actively being discussed on social media, with reports circulating that the wedding is scheduled for March.
Upon arriving at IGIMS, Minister Nishant Kumar assessed the state of medical services and issued directives to staff to improve the system. He also participated in the opening of the CCS ward. Nevertheless, the atmosphere changed abruptly after the opening ceremony. As soon as the minister approached the patients, a barrage of complaints followed.
One person stated that their mother died due to incorrect blood pressure measurement. Another woman raised serious questions, accusing the hospital of improper treatment. Patients and their relatives continuously expressed doubts about the healthcare system's functioning, noting that they face numerous difficulties and that the treatment in the hospital is substandard.
During the inspection, Minister Nishant Kumar listened to all the complaints received and gave appropriate instructions to the officials present. At the same time, he did not answer the question about his wedding, merely smiling before leaving the inspection site.
New weekly HIV treatment is attracting attention due to clinical trial results, offering some people living with HIV the possibility of taking medication weekly instead of daily. These developments occur amid growing researcher interest in long-acting HIV treatments that can reduce medication frequency while maintaining viral suppression.
Taking antiretroviral drugs daily remains a key element of HIV therapy in South Africa. National guidelines from the Department of Health recommend antiretroviral therapy for people living with HIV to achieve and maintain viral suppression. These recommendations include treatment based on dolutegravir, which is taken once a day along with other antiretroviral drugs in established regimens.
Daily intake is already established and part of South Africa's national HIV control program. However, for many patients, remembering the daily dose can be challenging. Missed doses, travel, the need for confidentiality, and managing medication within daily routines can affect adherence.
The new drug is a combination of two medications—itrastvir and lenacapavir—in an investigational oral form designed for once-weekly administration. Phase 3 trial results from ISLEND-1 showed that weekly treatment maintained viral suppression in adults living with HIV who already had viral suppression and transitioned from existing daily treatment. After 48 weeks, the weekly treatment was found to be no worse than Biktarvy, a daily HIV medication.
A second Phase 3 study, ISLEND-2, also investigated this weekly combination in individuals who had already achieved viral suppression and switched from standard daily HIV treatment. However, it should be noted that these results do not mean the weekly pill is yet available to patients. The treatment remains experimental, and developers are expected to submit clinical trial data to regulatory bodies for review.
The most obvious and significant difference lies in the frequency of administration. Patients on standard daily oral HIV treatment must take medication every day. The investigational treatment reduces this frequency to one dose per week. This could simplify treatment for some individuals who struggle with a daily dosing schedule.
Nevertheless, reducing the frequency of medication does not mean adherence becomes less important. Weekly treatment must still be taken according to the prescribed schedule. Furthermore, the approaches differ in availability: daily HIV treatment is already integrated into the South African healthcare system, whereas the weekly combination is not yet approved for routine use.
The weekly pill is part of a broader trend toward HIV medications that do not require daily intake. According to U.S. National Institutes of Health data, long-acting HIV drugs can be administered at intervals ranging from two weeks to six months, depending on the specific drug.
The World Health Organization has also recommended long-acting injectable cabotegravir and rilpivirine as an alternative switching option for eligible individuals who have achieved full viral suppression on oral therapy. South Africa is also implementing long-acting injectable lenacapavir for HIV prevention. It is important not to confuse prevention and treatment: using a drug to prevent HIV does not guarantee that the same product is available or approved for treating people already infected with HIV.
This could potentially simplify treatment for some patients. The World Health Organization has highlighted adherence challenges associated with daily oral treatment and believes that long-acting HIV drugs can offer benefits such as reduced dosing frequency, convenience, and privacy.
At the same time, WHO has pointed out issues such as cost, accessibility, drug resistance, and implementation within the healthcare system as critical aspects when introducing long-acting HIV drugs. Thus, the weekly pill could serve as an intermediate solution between daily pills and long-acting injection methods: medication would still be taken at home, but much less frequently.
No. The new data does not imply that people living with HIV should stop taking their current medications or change their treatment. Existing HIV treatment guidelines in South Africa remain in effect, and the weekly combination is still in the research phase. New studies point to a future where people with HIV may have more treatment options, depending on regulatory approval, clinical suitability, and availability.
For now, people living with HIV should continue taking medication as prescribed by their doctor and consult with their healthcare provider before making any changes to their treatment.
Camp chairman Dipak Khed emphasizes that the goal is one—to make the pilgrims' further journey easier and safer, because although the pilgrim stops here to rest, their ultimate goal has not yet been reached.
