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- “The first campaign aims at raising awareness on indoor air pollution, which is the second largest killer in India
- The second campaign is for realizing the goal of affordable healthcare and Cure in India through Make in India”
New Delhi, August 23, 2018:
As a precursor to the 25th MTNL Perfect Health Mela to be held in from 24th to 28thOctober 2018 at the Talkatora Indoor Stadium, New Delhi, the Heart Care Foundation of India (HCFI), a national NGO working in the healthcare sector, launched the ‘Make in India for Cure in India’ and ‘Indoor pollution is slow poison’ campaigns. The Perfect Health Mela is a one-of-its-kind event held every year with a mission to generate all-around awareness on health. In its 25th edition, the event expects participation from over 1,00,000 individuals from all walks of life.
The campaigns launch focused on strategies to reduce indoor air pollution and the need to use medical devices manufactured in India. The aim is two-fold: to raise awareness on the fact that indoor air pollution can affect health as much as outdoor pollution; and to realize the goal of affordable healthcare through the Make in India for Cure in India movement.
Padma Shri Awardee, Dr KK Aggarwal, President, Heart Care Foundation of India (HCFI); Padma Shri Awardee Mr Ashok Chakradhar, Author and Poet; Mr Rajiv Nath, Forum Coordinator Association of Indian Medical Device Industry (AIMED); and Mr J K Jain CMD DASNAC and Chair of the Just Solve Foundation were some of the dignitaries at the launch. Representatives from the Delhi Government health and environment department, DST, MTNL, MCD, and NDMC were also present.
Speaking at the event,Dr KK Aggarwalsaid, “We, at the Heart Care Foundation of India, are committed to ensuring the larger goal of affordable healthcare for all and the Perfect Health Mela is a medium to do that and more. The campaigns being launched today are just two of the many other initiatives to be undertaken as part of the mela. We often talk of pollution outside our homes. However, indoor air pollution is an equally urgent issue that needs attention. People spend more than 90% of their life indoors. Over 50% of employed adults work in offices or similar non-industrial environments. The second campaign, ‘Make in India’ should be aggressively promoted to ensure that no one lacks access to timely treatment. This covers medical devices as well. All this will help in furthering the goal of ‘Cure in India’.”
The second largest killer, poor indoor air quality is responsible for about 1.3 million deaths in India each year, according to statistics. A building-related illness can be linked to an identifiable causative agent (e.g. hypersensitivity pneumonitis, allergic asthma related to a sensitizing agent). Host factors, such as bronchial hyper reactivity and psychosocial work issues, play a role in some cases.
Addressing the media, Mr J K Jain, said, “Indoor air pollution often goes unnoticed and can be a major health hazard even in urban areas. This makes it imperative for those in the construction business to design buildings keeping in mind the energy-efficiency angle and ensure that adequate measures are put in place to tackle indoor air pollution. Our children need fresh air to breathe and this is possible only through concerted efforts.”
As per industry estimates, the Indian medical devices market will grow to USD 50 billion by 2025. Currently, India is counted among the top 20 global medical devices market and is the 4th largest medical devices market in Asia after Japan, China and South Korea.
Speaking on this, Mr Rajiv Nath, said, “Make in India is imperative for Cure in India. Without medical devices there cannot be any health care delivery. With the government’s intentions to make India a global medical devices manufacturing hub in the coming years and to achieve the overall goal of affordable health care for all by making all critical and lifesaving medical devices available at affordable prices, it is highly imperative to translate these intentions to implementing policies that boost this campaign.”
There is also a need to promote a culture of quality and safety in medical devices and not lowest price, lowest quality as is the case of L1 bidding in government procurement. Ensuring quality in health care system is paramount for the success of the “Make in India for Cure in India” mission.
Private and public healthcare including Ayushman Bharat needs to incentivize ICMED (Indian Certification for Medical Devices) Quality Assurance Certification from the Quality Council of India. The government should provide level playing field, if not a strategic advantage to domestic manufacturing while safeguarding consumers or India will remain 70%-90% import dependent. Consumers can be protected by rational price controls and strong deterrents like punishment to errant companies engaged in unethical marketing practices to boost domestic manufacturing.
Mr Ashok Chakradhar commended the HCFI on organizing the Perfect Health Mela consistently for the last 25 years. He added, “This event is a huge platform for mass health awareness.Its successful innings year-on-year is due to infotainment as the format. Recommendations for better policies on reducing indoor air pollution and Make in India are very relevant in the current scenario. Apart from addressing pollution in external surroundings, we must clean internal pollution also and one way to do so is to practice Hasya Rasa.”
Ms Jayshree Ardey Chauhan, Principal Chief Conservator of Forest, added that, “Indoor and outdoor plants can help reduce the amount of indoor pollution. The department will be putting an exhibition and distributing plants for the said purpose.
Mr Anish Mehta, GM (EB) MTNL Delhi, added that, “During the mela, MTNL will communicate health sutras to all its mobile subscribers through e-mail and SMS.”
The theme for the Perfect Health Mela this year is “Affordable Healthcare”. Dr Tusker, the friendly elephant, is the mascot for the event. Visitors and stakeholders alike can look forward to various attractions this year apart from the inter-school and college events and health camps.
