Indian quack infects 21 with HIV using common syringes

A fake doctor who has been treating poor villagers for colds, coughs and diarrhoea, infected at least 21 of them with HIV by using contaminated syringes and needles, says an Indian health official.

The official, Sushil Choudhury, says police are looking for Rajendra Yadav, who has fled Bangarmau, a small town in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.

The villagers say they rarely saw him changing the needles. Choudhury said Tuesday that probably led to the spread of HIV.

With India's health care system facing a massive shortage of doctors and hospitals, millions of poor people seek fake doctors for cheap treatment, reports the Associated Press.

India had 2.1 million people living with HIV at the end of 2016, according to UNAIDS.