Haryana village asks couples to undergo HIV test before marriage

Bhivani: Seeking to raise awareness about the AIDS menace, a village in Haryana has decided to urge prospective brides and grooms there to undergo HIV diagnosis test before solemnising their marriage.

Bhivani's Chandeni village has taken up this initiative to make people aware about the deadly virus and to prevent its spread among the future generations, its sarpanch Mamata Sangwan said.

Sangwan, a graduate, who was recently elected unopposed as the village head, said the idea was approved by the panchayat after a consensus was made on it.

"Now if any two persons from our village want to get married, they will have to show their HIV diagnosis test reports to the panchayat," she said.

The move, however, does not mandates the test as a compulsory condition for prospective brides and grooms to get married in the village. The panchayat has also appealed to other village panchayats across the country to adopt this measure to build awareness.