Balconagar; 20th April 2023: Bharat Aluminium Company Limited (BALCO), India’s iconic aluminium producer and a subsidiary of Vedanta Aluminium, organized a weeklong health campaign towards promoting access to primary healthcare and safe motherhood practices among communities in its vicinity. Held under the aegis of BALCO’s health initiative Project Arogya, between World Health Day (April 7) and National Safe Motherhood Day (April 11), the campaign featured multispecialty health camps and Maternal and Child Health Nutrition (MCHN) sessions, benefitting over 250 women, children, elderly persons, and other vulnerable groups in rural areas.
As part of the health camps, BALCO facilitated specialty consultations from dentists, pediatricians, gynecologists, general physicians, and physiotherapists, in addition to diagnostic services for lifestyle ailments such as diabetes and blood pressure. These were availed of by over 130 people from 7 communities residing in the vicinity of Makhur Pani in Korba.
In addition, BALCO organized a series of Maternal Child Health & Nutrition (MCHN) sessions at Aurakachar, Chuiya, Belgari Nala, and Shiv Nagar for raising awareness around safe motherhood practices. Organized in collaboration with the Korba District Health Department, they included awareness talks on safe motherhood & nutrition, hemoglobin (HB) testing and medical consultations, that benefitted more than 120 pregnant and lactating women in 4 communities.
Highlighting the impact of the health campaign, Mr. Rajesh Kumar, CEO & Director, BALCO, said, “BALCO is committed to ensuring enhanced access to healthcare services for people residing in the vicinity of our operations. Sustaining good health helps entire communities unlock access to new opportunities for their growth and progress. Through our health initiatives, we maintain a continued focus on augmenting community access to reliable medical services, and through this help improve the quality of life of people residing in remote areas, and especially for the vulnerable sections of these communities.”
BALCO’s Project Arogya is a comprehensive health initiative that enhances access to quality primary healthcare services through Rural Health Posts and promotes Maternal & Child Health, with a focus on mitigating malnutrition. The project, through its curative and preventive healthcare services, has successfully reached more than 30,000 beneficiaries in more than 30 communities last year. Project Arogya encompasses a wide range of healthcare interventions made by BALCO that together reach out to over one lakh people, through:
Mobile Health Van: The Mobile Health Van (MHV) addresses the problems of inaccessibility to, and inability to afford basic essential health care in the community by providing free primary healthcare facilities at the doorstep. The fortnightly visits of MHVs have benefitted more than 14000 people in FY23.
Rural Health Posts (RHP): These centers provide quality treatment and general test services across the neighboring communities.
Health Chaupals: The initiative provides special consultation services by Gynecologist under Health Chaupals have benefitted more than 170 adolescents, mothers, and children.
Multispecialty Mega Health Camps: The quarterly health camps provide specialty health treatments in impoverished areas. Nearly 1700 people benefitted from these camps in FY23.
HIV Awareness & Counselling: The initiative creates awareness around HIV among high-risk behavior groups in the vicinity of BALCO such as truckers and migrant workers through mass awareness campaigns, canopy camps, and counseling sessions.
PD Hearth Program: Positive Deviance/Hearth (PDH) is an effective behavior change program for the rehabilitation and sustenance of malnourished children without medical complications. The interventions under this program have helped bring health improvements in 360+ children.
THR training: THR (Take Home Ration) is a supplementary food product provided by the Women and Child Development Department for pregnant, lactating mothers and malnourished children The company has trained more than 600 mothers on recipes from THR for better consumption & improving nutrition levels of mother and child.
In addition to Project Arogya, additional initiatives have been implemented to cater to specific healthcare needs, such as:
Project Nayi Kiran: The project creates awareness, capacity building, and leadership development of women and adolescent girls on hygienic practices during menstruation and appropriate care. It has capacitated more than 400 community members as Master Trainers, whi have emerged as leaders of change in the community and helped sensitize more than 48000 women, men, adolescent girls & boys in 45 villages.
Nutrition Garden: To sustain healthy nutritional practices, 300+ Nutritional gardens have been built with selected Anganwadi Centre families of pregnant and lactating mothers and those with malnourished kids.
BALCO Medical Centre: The Balco Medical Centre (BMC) is a 170-bed tertiary oncology facility a flagship initiative of the Vedanta Medical Research Foundation (VMRF) that availed 10000+ people with healthcare services, last year.
The company touches the lives of about 1.27 lakh people annually through deep interventions in education, sustainable livelihoods, women empowerment, health, water & sanitation, sports & culture, and infrastructure development. BALCO’s social endeavors reach over 123 villages, covering 4 districts of Chhattisgarh viz. Korba, Kawardha, Surguja, and Raipur. Its CSR policies and systems are framed and implemented in such a manner so as to deliver sustainable impact on the ground, making these communities equal participants in the progress of the nation.
