Neelu Vyas, New Delhi: Try to strike a conversation on condoms, and most people say they want to talk about it.

However, this shyness doesn't necessarily mean ignorance. A recent United Nations survey shows awareness levels among women about the use of condoms in preventing AIDS has risen considerably.

The survey, conducted in six districts in six states says, the level of awareness is:

• 100 per cent in Aizawl (Mizoram)
  
  
• 97 per cent in Guntur (Andhra Pradesh)
  
  
• 95 per cent in Bellary (Karnataka)
  
  
• 90 per cent in Kanpur (Uttar Pradesh)
  
  
• 75 per cent in Kishanganj (Bihar)

But there is a darker side too. Increasing sexual violence on women in terms of forced sex. Forty-three per cent women in Kanpur, followed by 17 per cent in Kishanganj and eight percent in Aizawl said they were forced to have sex with their partners.

Says Country Coordinator, UNAIDS, Dennis Broun, "This is just the first step as we need to do a lot in terms of working consistently."

This survey reduces the vulnerability of young women between the age group of 13 to 24 from HIV infection, but the other side of the survey is that there is a huge gap between the perception and the behaviour of women.

If women empowerment has to be reached, perhaps this knowledge needs to be translated into a consistent behavioural pattern.