NEW DELHI: A four-week long social CSR campaign concluded in the holy city of Ayodhya on Friday. During its five-city activity it covered a population of over two crore.
Crafted by The New Indian Express Group in collaboration with Hero We Care - Hero MotoCorp's CSR platform, the Surakshit Aatmanirbhar Bharat: Ride Safe India Initiative aims at imparting awareness and understanding among two-wheeler riders regarding personal safety measures and strict adherence to traffic regulations. The initiative ran from January 9, 2024, to February 15, 2024.
As part of this campaign, a total of 6,000 helmets and 6,000 jackets was distributed to riders across five cities for over a month. The inaugural day of the initiative witnessed the distribution of 200 jackets and an equal number of helmets to riders in the presence of esteemed dignitaries including Mutha Ashok Jain, IPS, Police Commissioner of Varanasi. Expanding its scope beyond Varanasi, the campaign progressed to Ahmedabad, Lucknow and Gorakhpur before concluding in Ayodhya.
From Ahmedabad, the notable figures included Safin Hassan, Deputy Commissioner of Police-Traffic; Ramesh Merja, IAS, Deputy Municipal Commissioner, South West Zone, Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation; and Jayrajsinh Vala, IPS, Deputy Commissioner Of Police, Special Operation Group-Crime Branch Ahmedabad City.
In Lucknow, the well-known people who attended were Dinesh Pratap Singh, State Minister Horticulture; A.K. Sharma, Minister Urban & Power Corporation; Rajeswar Singh, MLA Sarojani Nagar, Lucknow; Prashant Kumar, DGP Police, Uttar Pradesh; Brajesh Pathak, Deputy CM, Uttar Pradesh; and B.D. Paulson IPS, ADG Traffic & Road Safety.
In Gorakhpur, anong those who attended were Samrendra Vikram Singh, Sansad Pratinidhi, Tara Mandal Nauka Vihar- Gorakhpur; Gaurav Grover, SSP Police, Gorakhpur; Manglesh Kumar Srivastava, Mayor Gorakhpur; K.S.Pratap Kumar, ADG Gorakhpur; Shyam Dev, SP Traffic Police, Gorakhpur; and Anand Vardhan, Vice Chairman, Gorakhpur Development Authority.
In Ayodhya, among those who attended were Vishal Singh, VC Ayodhya Development Authority; Girish Pati Tripathi, Mayor Ayodhya; Ved Prakash Gupta, MLA Ayodhya; Inspector General of Police Praveen Tripathi, IPS; Divisional Commissioner Gaurav Dayal, IAS: and Nitish Kumar, IAS, DM Ayodhya.
Lakshmi Menon, Chief Executive Officer of The New Indian Express Group, expressed gratitude for the opportunity to launch the Surakshit Aatmanirbhar Bharat: Ride Safe India outreach programme, emphasizing the critical need for such initiatives in a country facing a staggering number of road accidents annually.
Bharatendu Kabi, Head of Corporate Communication & Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) at Hero MotoCorp, highlighted the campaign's objective of promoting safe riding behaviour among two-wheeler riders, stressing the importance of helmet usage. Partnering with The New Indian Express Group, the Hero MotoCorp aims to instill a culture of responsible riding, particularly among the youth. The collaboration between The New Indian Express Group and Hero MotoCorp underscores a shared commitment to fostering road safety awareness and ensuring a safer environment for all road users.