IMA, Dabur join hands to fight dengue, chikungunya

New Delhi, Oct 27 (UNI) The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has joined hands with Dabur India Ltd to arrest the spread of deadly mosquito-borne diseases like dengue and chikungunya.

Under this initiative, IMA and Dabur is jointly undertaking a massive awareness exercise across leading schools in India to educate children and their parents on how to protect themselves from the mosquito menace.

This initiative will initially cover 350 top schools in the four states of Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu, said a Dabur spokesman.

Addressing students of Delhi Pubic School, Mathura Road, Dr Rajiv Garg of Indian Medical Association, said,''The past few months have seen a marked increase in the number of cases of deadly diseases like dengue and Chikungunya through mosquito bites. What is more alarming is that there is no cure for some of these diseases, so prevention is the most effective manner of dealing with such life-threatening diseases. Through this initiative, we intend to spread awareness on the diseases and the effective ways to prevent yourself from mosquito bites and keep such deadly diseases away." The activity includes a small activity-cum-entertainment programme in the schools, followed by distribution of literature containing information about mosquito-borne diseases and prevention.

Contrary to popular perception, diseases like Dengue and Chikungunya are spread by mosquitoes during the day. Children, when they venture out to play in gardens or even while in school, are at risk of being bitten by these mosquitoes. Even people in offices are at risk of falling sick after being bitten by these mosquitoes.

''We, at Dabur, feel that being a good corporate citizen, we have a responsibility towards the society. As part of our community outreach campaign, Dabur has come together with Indian Medical Association in educating the society and help combat the outbreak of diseases like Dengue and Chikungunya,'' said Mr Girish Kumar, Senior General Manager (Home Care Division), Dabur India Ltd.

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