पत्रिका जगत Positive Journalism
Jaipur, 1 April 2019: Swine flu cases have seen a spike across India, including Rajasthan in just a couple of months since the beginning of 2019. In a bid to combat swine flu, Godrej Protekt Mr. Magic, India’s first powder to liquid handwash, has initiated a week long awareness program across 35 schools in Jaipur with more than 33,000 students. Children across schools will be educated on preventive measures to curb the spread of swine flu.
According to the health department report, around 2,706 people have been tested positive for H1N1 disease in the state, while the number of swine flu cases has crossed the 1,000 mark in Jaipur only. Children face high risk as they are more exposed to the H1N1 virus, the primary cause of swine flu, in crowded places like schools. Thus, Godrej Protekt Mr. Magic chose to start an awareness program in schools. As part of this, a team of doctors from Protekt Mr. Magic will visit Jaipur schools and engage students during morning assembly on how they can protect themselves from swine flu. This will be followed by free product distribution.
Speaking on the swine flu awareness program, Mr. Sunil Kataria, CEO – India and SAARC, Godrej Consumer Products Ltd said, ‘The best prevention for swine flu is to keep hands sanitized and clean. Most people make the mistake of washing their hands with water only. Even when they wash their hands, they use soap bar, while the more hygienic alternative is actually liquid hand wash, which however is considered expensive. So, we have empowered Indian households with Protekt Mr. Magic handwash that makes a bottle full of hand wash at just INR 15. As a health and wellness brand, Protekt Mr. Magic aims to spread awareness on hand hygiene habits, especially when a simple act of hand washing with a liquid hand wash can curb the spread of life-threatening diseases like swine flu. The awareness program is our contribution towards ensuring safety and well-being of children in a scenario when swine flu cases are constantly rising.”
Swine Flu prevention has become a serious concern. While health advisories have been issued prescribing the do’s and don’ts, the most important things advised by the government is to ensure citizens wash their hands with a soap solution and not just water so as to be able to mitigate the spread of this disease. In addition to soaps and liquid hand washes, hand sanitizers are also deemed to be a very good precautionary measure.
It is believed that good hand washing thoroughly with soap and warm water is the first line of defence against the spread of H1N1. Children need to be taught to use waterless antibacterial hand sanitizer to kill germs when they are unable to get to a hand-washing station. Sanitizer products are useful for reducing risks associated with the spread of disease. Similar to the ritual of starting your day with a morning prayer in schools, our aim is to get the kids imbibe the ritual of washing their hands before meals.
In households where soap solutions are used, mothers usually prefer bar soaps for hand washing given the comparatively higher costs of liquid hand washes. However, what they do not realize is that in bar soap usage, impurities from one wash are carried forward to the next – which is extremely detrimental in the case of swine flu. With liquid hand washes, on the other hand, every drop is pure and untouched by the human hand, limiting the chances of contamination.
About Godrej Consumer Products Ltd:
Godrej Consumer Products is a leading emerging markets company. As part of the 120-year young Godrej Group, we are fortunate to have a proud legacy built on the strong values of trust, integrity and respect for others. At the same time, we are growing fast and have exciting, ambitious aspirations. Today, our Group enjoys the patronage of 1.1 billion consumers globally, across different businesses. In line with our 3 by 3 approach to international expansion at Godrej Consumer Products, we are building a presence in 3 emerging markets (Asia, Africa, Latin America) across 3 categories (home care, personal wash, hair care). We rank among the largest household insecticide and hair care players in emerging markets. In household insecticides, we are the leader in India, the second largest player in Indonesia and are expanding our footprint in Africa. We are the leader in serving the hair care needs of women of African descent, the number one player in hair colour in India and Sub-Saharan Africa, and among the leading players in Latin America. We rank number two in soaps in India and are the number one player in air fresheners and wet tissues in Indonesia.
But for us, it is very important that besides our strong financial performance and innovative, much-loved products, we remain a good company. Approximately 23 per cent of the promoter holding in the Godrej Group is held in trusts that invest in the environment, health and education. We are also bringing together our passion and purpose to make a difference through our ‘Good & Green’ approach to create a more inclusive and greener India. At the heart of all of this, is our talented team. We take much pride in fostering an inspiring workplace, with an agile and high performance culture. We are also deeply committed to recognising and valuing diversity across our teams.
