New Delhi: As part of its vision to make Indian roads safer, Aster DM Healthcare launched a national social responsibility effort under ‘Aster SafeRoads i#PLEDGE’ along with Cricket Legend Sachin Tendulkar, in New Delhi.
Dr. Azad Moopen, Founder Chairman and Managing Director of Aster DM Healthcare, a leading healthcare service provider in India and G.C.C took the ‘iPledge’ along with Sachin Tendulkar and thousands of school children at Indira Gandhi Indoor stadium to officially launch this corporate responsibility movement across India.
Prior to taking the #ipledge, Sachin Tendulkar along with Dr. Moopen walked on the zebra crossing of the signal near the stadium with some school children in reiteration of the safe manner to cross roads as also to remind drivers about the sanctity of the zebra crossing. The movement seeks to engage with millions of Indians to take the #ipledge on their Twitter and Facebook profiles. http://astersaferoads.com/#iPLEDGE.
‘Aster SafeRoads’ is another significant addition to Aster DM Healthcare’s impressive efforts in offering a Healing Touch and Making a World of Difference. Aster has been involved in deploying Mobile Medical Units for Community Healthcare, developing Early Cancer Detection Centres, supporting Dialysis Centre as also offering Cardiac Surgery for the economically backward as also offering support to paediatric cardiac cases with their Little Hearts initiative. The underlying principle of ‘Aster SafeRoads’ is embodied in the principle Good healthcare starts with prevention. To combat the potential human and economic loss to the nation,
Aster DM Healthcare’s is taking the lead of to encourage simple steps to avoid mishaps on the road.
Be it crossing roads, reducing speed or stopping at a zebra crossing, “Aster SafeRoads #iPLEDGE” movement plans to educate and inculcate responsible road habits and behaviour among citizens by encouraging children to be the agents of change. The campaign will include activities to raise awareness about road safety rules, traffic signs, road etiquette, road markings as well as first-aid. The ’Aster SafeRoads’ campaign will actively engage with members of the public on best road safety practices.
Aster SAFEROADS #iPLEDGE involves:
· #iPLEDGE to always wear a seat belt
· #iPLEDGE to not be on the phone while driving
· #iPLEDGE to use zebra crossing, subways and footpaths.
· #iPLEDGE to always wear a helmet
According to Ministry of Road Transport, Government of India, a life is lost every 3.7 minutes in India due to road accidents resulting in annual fatalities of 1.2 million and serious injuries to over 5.5 million Indians over the last decade. Last year, 2,38,562 road accident fatalities occurred. Over 67,324 homes lost their breadwinners to road accidents and over 43,562 parents lost their children. According to another report by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), speeding and dangerous driving were the biggest reasons for road fatalities. Accidents involving two-wheelers and trucks & lorries accounted for nearly half of the lives lost in road crashes.
Commenting on the burgeoning cases of road accidents in the country, Dr. Azad Moopen, Founder Chairman & Managing Director of Aster DM Healthcare said, ‘’ The ‘epidemic’ of road fatalities and disabilities is gradually being recognised as a public health concern. As a leading healthcare provider we believe that it is a shared responsibility to raise public consciousness and encourage preventable behaviours to reduce the human and economic toll of road injuries. Aster Corporate Social Responsibility efforts will complement the Government’s national campaign on road safety.”
“At Aster DM Healthcare we believe that the large instances of road related incidents can be tackled through change in our behaviour and attitude and we are committing a significant financial and physical resources towards this endeavour. Road related incidents are avoidable and we will prove it through our efforts with Aster SafeRoads,’’ added Dr. Moopen.
Aster DM Healthcare’s will also leverage its facilities across the country including Aster Medcity (Kochi), Aster MIMS (Kottakkal), DM WIMS (Wayanad), Aster Aadhar Hospital (Kolhapur), Aster CMI Hospital (Bengaluru), Aster Prime Hospital (Hyderabad), Aster Medipoint Hospital (Pune) to build awareness among the local communities and engage with the stakeholders with Aster SafeRoads. These facilities are located in states like Karnataka, Telangana, Maharashtra and Kerala which have been identified as some of the states contributing to significant number of road accidents.
Commenting on the Aster SafeRoads initatives, Sachin Tendulkar said, “I’m happy to see that an initiative like Aster SafeRoads is being undertaken to address the grave problem of road fatalities in India. We are reaching out to school children across the country to be the custodians of the ‘iPledge’ campaign as their voices will echo with greater impact across audiences of all ages. I request every Indian to actively participate and take the #iPledge for safer roads. I am sure my young champions will make a difference and significantly reduce the road fatalities in the country which will be a stupendous achievement.”
About Aster DM Healthcare
Incepted in 1987, Aster DM Healthcare currently owns and operates a network of more than 290 healthcare units across West Asia and India,which includes 14 hospitals, encompassing clinics, pharmacies, and a modern medical city. These network units operate under the brand names, ASTER, MEDCARE, ASTER Medcity and Aster MIMS, ACCESS. The company offers primary, secondary, tertiary and quaternary care in order to meet distinct needs of people in 9 countries.
It has more than 13,000 employees including more than 1,500 doctors and 3,000 paramedical personnel focused on delivering compassionate care. The group treats more than 25,000 patients on an average daily across its facilities.
