The Red Ribbon Express was launched in India on World AIDS Day, December 1, 2007. The seven coach train was flagged off by United Progressive Alliance Chairperson Sonia Gandhi. The Red Ribbon Express became the first time information and awareness about HIV/AIDS was disseminated through a train service, Indian Railways. Initial talk of the HIV/AIDS awareness train began over two years before its launch. The idea of the Red Ribbon Express was developed by the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation, the National AIDS Control Organisation and Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan in 2004.