VIJAYAWADA: Governor and president of the Andhra Pradesh State Branch of Indian Red Cross Society (IRCS-AP) S Abdul Nazeer on Monday participated as chief guest in an event held at the Raj Bhavan to mark World Red Cross Day-2023, commemorating the birth anniversary of Jean Henry Dunant, the founding father of the Red Cross movement in the world.
Lauding IRCS for organising special multi-purpose health camps and rendering services during the Covid-19 pandemic, the Governor urged it to expand its services to the tribal areas and cover more remote and unreachable regions. He also appreciated the Society for taking up initiatives, such as the massive tree plantation campaign with the theme ‘Plant a Tree-Save the Planet’ and the blood donation campaign with the theme ‘Donate Blood-Save a Life’, over the past three years.
Stressing on the need to focus on increasing green cover in the State, Nazeer emphasised on the urgent need to create awareness on the challenge posed by global warming and climate change.
He requested for liberal contribution to the Climate Action Fund, created by the IRCS for the first time by the AP State Branch, to mitigate climate change impact.
The Governor presented Red Cross medals to director of medical education Dr V Vinod Kumar, district Collectors Shrikesh B Lathkar (Srikakulam), Dr A Mallikarjuna (Visakhapatnam), Dr Kritika Shukla (Kakinada) and Dr Madhavi Latha (East Godavari) for mobilising funds for their respective district branches of Red Cross.
Medals were also presented to philanthropists, including director of Aditya Educational Institutions in Kakinada Dr Suguna, Virchow Foundation CEO Dr T Praveena, Round Table India, Vizakhapatnam, director Sorabh Dhanuka, Sahitya Educational Society director P Chandrasekhar Reddy, Aurobindo Pharma Foundation senior general manager M Radha Madhav, PGCIL-Hyderabad executive director Rajesh Srivastava, for their contribution towards different causes of the Red Cross.