At least 23 children who received blood transfusions have tested positive for HIV, Indian officials said on Monday as authorities launched an investigation into a government hospital. The infected children, aged between five to 10 years, suffer from thalassaemia, a rare genetic disorder that requires regular transfusions. Parents said their children received fresh blood at a public hospital in Junagadh district in the western state of Gujarat, 315 kilometres (195 miles) from the city of Ahmedabad. “We have initiated an inquiry into the case. This is a very serious matter,” the state’s principal health secretary Rajesh Kishore told AFP without giving further details.
