Tag Awareness

Hyderabad, November 26th 2024 – Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (NMIMS) University Hyderabad recently hosted a Walkathon to raise awareness about diabetes and encourage healthier lifestyles, organized by the student committees Udaan (The Social Responsibility Committee of the School of Pharmacy and Technology Management (SPTM) at NMIMS Hyderabad) and XLR8 (sports facility club at NMIMS Hyderabad). The event, held in conjunction with Diabetes Awareness Month in November, successfully brought together students, faculty, and staff from various schools under the NMIMS university’s umbrella. With over 70 participants, the Walkathon made a significant impact in fostering a sense of community and promoting the importance of health awareness across the campus.

The Walkathon followed a scenic 4 km route around the university’s Hyderabad campus, starting from the main gate. This route was carefully planned to offer participants an enjoyable walk while ensuring safety. Members of the Udaan and XLR8 committees, along with campus security personnel, were stationed along the route to guide the walkers and maintain security. The event was not only an opportunity to raise awareness about diabetes but also a chance for the university community to unite for a common cause.

The Walkathon kicked off with an inauguration ceremony, where the committee heads delivered insightful speeches about diabetes, its impact on society, and the importance of adopting a healthy lifestyle. This was followed by the walk, where participants were encouraged to wear blue attire as a symbol of their support for diabetes awareness. The majority of the participants embraced this theme, helping to create a visual impact that highlighted the event’s significance.

NMIMS University played a vital role in facilitating the Walkathon, ensuring that all logistical needs were met to guarantee a safe and seamless experience for all participants. The university took essential steps, including setting up water stations along the route and having ambulances on standby to address any medical needs.

Dr. Ashwini Deshpande, Deputy Director & Professor, SPTM, NMIMS University, “We are proud to have hosted the first-ever Walkathon at NMIMS Hyderabad, aimed at raising awareness about diabetes and promoting healthier lifestyles. It was heartening to see students, faculty, and staff come together to support such a meaningful cause. We hope this Walkathon inspires everyone to adopt healthier habits and encourages continued discussions around health education on our campus.”

The Walkathon also highlighted the importance of community-building efforts on campus, reinforcing the role that universities play in shaping a culture of health and wellness. By involving faculty, students, and staff, NMIMS demonstrated its holistic approach to education, recognizing the need for a well-rounded campus experience that encompasses both academic and social responsibility.

The event concluded with a feedback collection session, where participants shared their thoughts and experiences. Winners of the Walkathon were also recognized, adding an element of friendly competition to the event. This Walkathon not only raised awareness about diabetes but also laid the foundation for more future initiatives that will further strengthen NMIMS’s role in promoting health education and social causes on campus.

In addition to the walkathon, NMIMS University also organised a Diabetes Awareness Session for students of grades 7 to 9 at SVKM School. Pharmacy students conducted interactive activities like quizzes and a “Know Your Sugar Intake” segment to educate young minds about diabetes prevention and management.

Hyderabad, 11^th November 2024: Every year, Children’s Eye Care Awareness Week is observed across the L V Prasad Eye Institute network, to raise public awareness about various eye diseases in children. This year it is being observed across the network from November 7–14, 2024.

This year, the theme is “Childhood Cataract” An awareness walk is being organized across the network on November 10, 2024. The walk aims to raise awareness on childhood cataracts, their impact on children’s vision, and the importance of early detection and treatment and encourage parents to seek timely medical advice.

Thaman S, Indian composer and Playback singer and Vishva Karthikeya, Telugu Actor were the Chief Guests for the walk at the Kallam Anji Reddy Campus, Hyderabad. About 300 children and parents participated in the walk carrying placards to create awareness about childhood cataracts. Thaman S expressed his pleasure at being made a part of this important awareness event and urged parents to “Catch Early, Act Early to ensure their children see clearly. It’s not about growing in life, but growing with responsibility of exploring what we can give back to the society is important. A white dot in the child’s eye is a cataract, while taking a photo if we spot a white dot in the child’s eye, it is important that we reach out to an eye specialist without delay, any delay can lead to a vision loss, he said.”

Vishva Karthikeya said, we are aware of cataract in adults, but kids too have the problem of cataract when eye develops between the ages of 6 to 8 years. Kids are the future of our country and it is our responsibility to ensure they are healthy, we need to identify cataract at the earliest and consult an ophthalmologist.

Several competitions and fun activities are being organized across the LVPEI network during November 7–14, 2024 – painting/fancy dress/elocution/clay modelling/ Braille reading/ pottery sessions. The activities are also open to children of employees.

The week-long celebrations will conclude on Children’s Day November 14, 2024 with a cultural program, prize distribution, magic show and an awareness talk on childhood cataract.

‘The outcomes are directly proportional to the stage at which it is diagnosed. Catch Early, Act Early to see Clearly. Childhood cataract can result in irreversible vision loss, if left untreated.’ said Dr Ramesh Kekunnaya, Head, Child Sight Institute, L V Prasad Eye Institute at the start of the walk. Cataract not only affects the vision but the overall development of the child. It is for us to ensure that none of the children miss on this opportunity and ensure a bright future for the child.

Dr Prashant Garg, Executive Chairman, LV Prasad Eye Institute; said, early detection ensures better outcome and this is particularly important for childhood cataracts. If the child doesn’t have clear vision, his brain development is affected. As healthcare warriors we have to ensure that our society is educated, once the society is educated, they have a better health. It is our responsibility to spread the message among public that how it is important for them to be conscious about some of the debilitating diseases and if they find anyone having that, they should act immediately.

National, 1^st October , 2024: HDFC ERGO General Insurance Company, India’s leading private sector general insurer, hosted the grand finale of the 9th edition of the Insurance Awareness Award Junior Quiz 2024 in Mumbai on its 22nd Foundation Day. The finale witnessed a battle of knowledge among six teams, where Nirmay Patel and Shourya Banerjee from New Era Senior Secondary School, Vadodara emerged as the winner from ~3,200 participating schools this year. Giving a tough competition to them were MCM Matriculation Higher Secondary School, Chennai and Cambridge Court High School, Jaipur who secured commendable first and second runner up positions, respectively.

The core theme of the quiz this year was ‘Broadening Boundaries – Insurance Awareness across Bharat’. Aligned with this thought, the Company reached out to diverse geographies and demographics, ensuring equal opportunity for the children to participate in this National level quiz, irrespective of their social and economic backgrounds. For the first time, 660+ Government Schools registered for this quiz, out of which ~430 schools were from Hindi and Tamil mediums. Also, for the first time, the quiz reached out to the schools from the North East regions and 250 schools participated from there. Besides, 32% of the schools who registered for the quiz were from small cities and towns of <10 lakhs population. The quiz also saw a healthy participation of 47% girl students, thus making it a true inclusive initiative for the children.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Anuj Tyagi, MD & CEO, HDFC ERGO General Insurance, said, “While India is making significant strides towards inclusive development, insurance penetration remains alarmingly low at around 4%. On the other side, India’s school education system is one of the largest in the world with over 1.5 million schools. We, at HDFC ERGO firmly believe that our young minds are the architects of India’s future and therefore, it is imperative to equip and empower them with insurance literacy so that they can take informed decisions and lead financially secured lives as they grow. We started this initiative in 2016 with just 18 schools in one city and it gives us an immense pride to witness the way this quiz has gained popularity over the years and so far, we have reached out to  students from across ~200 cities of India – thus making this event as one of the landmark event for the students of this country.”

This year’s quiz journey began with a massive pool of schools in the preliminary rounds which was followed by the cluster rounds, four zonal rounds and one eliminator round. Six top teams finally secured their places in the highly anticipated grand finale. Post the grand finale, the students were also taken for an educational excursion to Nehru Science Centre (Mumbai), which is India’s largest interactive science centre, to provide them with an opportunity to explore hands-on exhibits that sparked curiosity and scientific inquiry.