Aster volunteers partners with Ruma Devi

Ms. Alisha Moopen, Deputy Managing Director of Aster DM Healthcare today led Aster Volunteers, the global CSR arm of Aster DM Healthcare, to partner with India’s well-known rural activist Ms. Ruma Devi, a Nari Shakti Puraskar 2018 awardee – the highest civilian honor for Women in India to provide health access to the rural household in Barmer, Rajasthan. Announced on occasion of International Women’s Day, the partnership will see Aster Volunteers and Ruma Devi collaborating to improve access to primary healthcare services for the rural population of the Barmer District, alongside launching women empowerment initiatives.

The fully equipped mobile clinic called as ‘Aster Volunteers Mobile Medical Services’ shall cater to the villages of Barmer, Rajasthan and provide primary health check-ups, medical eye exam, health education and training. Over the last few years, Aster Volunteers has been focusing on empowerment of underprivileged women through multiple initiatives led by Ms. Alisha Moopen, who believes that women empowerment should start from the health of a women. With this regard, the women empowerment initiatives would start with education and training for the rural women to manage their own health alongside the required medical examination, and also teach them to manage their families’ health like vaccination for their children, hygiene and sanitization, awareness on different diseases. This would be further followed by skill development training for rural women which will enable them to earn their own livelihood. The initiatives will further support rural artisan women to enhance their skill sets, help them source material and also market their products.

Talking about initiative, Ms. Alisha Moopen – Deputy Managing Director, Aster DM Healthcare said, “Women are the centre of caring of their family. With programs like these, we can educate the women better so that she is enabled and empowered to take better care of herself and her whole family. In villages, where most of them live as big joint families, this would mean caring for old, young and for herself better. However, the health of a women particularly in the rural household is the most neglected. The notion that her health is least priority has been weaved into her. We are glad to partner with Ruma Devi and support her in her journey to improve the health and welfare of these women and in-turn empower them to support their families’ welfare. At Aster, being an organization with 59% of women workforce, we feel empowerment of women starts with empowering them to manage their own health first which will enable them to prosper and better support their families.”

“We are really glad that Aster Volunteers and Ms. Alisha Moopen have decided to join our cause and see value in the work that we are doing for the upliftment of the villages of Barmer, Rajasthan. We are eagerly looking forward to take our partnership forward,” said Ms. Ruma Devi.

Aster Volunteers has been actively engaged in providing medical aid for treatment of patients from marginalized and economically backward sections of the society. Apart from running the mobile clinic, various other women empowerment initiatives will also be explored in the region to enable women to better support themselves and their families.

Over the last 5 years, Aster Volunteers has emerged into a global movement being driven by over 42,000 volunteers who have impacted over 3.5 million lives.
MB Bureau