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Microsoft Corporation's chief patron Bill Gates, the world's richest man, began his four-day visit to India on Monday.
Gates's business interests will take a back seat on this, his third visit to the country, as he interacts with AIDS patients and works to increase awareness of the disease.
On the first day of his visit, Gates is scheduled to visit a home for HIV-positive people. He will also attend a training programme for AIDS volunteers.
Later, he will call on Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to discuss the plans of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to help AIDS victims and push the hepatitis B vaccination plan.
He will also call on President A P J Abdul Kalam.
Gates says he has developed close professional and personal ties with India. The country is home not only to a Microsoft software development centre, but also to some of the company's senior advisers and engineers.
Microsoft India managing director Rajiv Kaul said, "India is one of the fastest growing subsidiaries for Microsoft in Asia. Bill's third visit to India proves the importance of our country in the software giant's overall game plan."
After addressing a press conference on Tuesday afternoon, Gates will meet other businessmen who have started a united initiative to fight AIDS.
According to reports, Gates will announce a contribution of at least US $100 million to India's fight against AIDS. The United States has already announced a donation of $120 million to the cause. India is reported to have about four million HIV-positive people.
But not everyone is appreciative of Gates's philanthropic efforts. While Union Health Minister Shatrughan Sinha feels that he is trying to spread fear in Indians regarding AIDS, leading paediatricians and neonatology experts feel that international drug companies are using the Gates Foundation funds to capture the Indian market.
Some doctors also feel that the funding for compulsory hepatitis B vaccination is based on falsely projected figures that will create fear and burden the Indian exchequer. They argue that real dangers like tuberculosis are being ignored in the bargain.
Many experts in government also don't agree with Gates's assessment. Jacob M Puliyel, head of the department of paediatrics and neonatology of St Stephen's Hospital in New Delhi, says, "Although the Bill Gates Foundation has set aside a large amount for health initiatives in poor countries, there is no long-term commitment to fund these causes." When the funding is discontinued, the developing countries will have to foot the bill to continue these programmes.
Save the Children, an international voluntary group, has done extensive studies in Africa and Asia on health programmes. Basing their opinions on the studies, they feel that the vaccines being promoted by Gates are those that the country doesn't need and can't afford. "We feel that Bill Gates's fund is hooking countries on vaccine programmes which benefit the vaccine manufacturers and not the people," Puliyel argues.
According to the Serum Institute of India, the country requires about Rs 500 crore [approximately US$103.09 million] a year for hepatitis B vaccination.
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