Nepal has begun to show signs of the being gripped by a major HIV/AIDS epidemic, says the National AIDS and STD Control Centre. Though the number of Nepal's HIV/AIDS infected remains "low" (1,807) it could be much higher given the poor testing facilities.

The recent numbers are based on tests of 182,180 blood samples. Among the HIV positive, the majority (1,063) of men were clients of sex workers, and of 536 positive among women, 384 were sex workers. The remaining 110 women were homemakers, who contacted the virus from their male partners. Besides, another 196 with the infection were intravenous drug users, infected by sharing needles. Another three got the virus through blood transfusion.

Most of those with HIV/AIDS are in the 20-29 age group. Also among the HIV positives are 19 children, 11 boys and 8 girls, victims of transmission from their parents. The Centre warns that although only 142 people are known to have succumbed to HIV/AIDS so far in Nepal, there is every possibility that the problem could be worse since there is no way of knowing how far the infection has penetrated the hinterland.