New Delhi: Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment Ramdas Athawale on Thursday expressed concern over the rising incidence of lifestyle diseases especially among young people and urged society to work towards preventive measures through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives in healthcare.
Speaking at the inauguration of CSR Health Impact Awards, which pledged to mainstream social justice through healthcare, Athawale said "Our government is supporting 125 crore people and it wants a good life for all. We want to prevent our young generation from falling prey to these (drastic) changes. Young people in their 30s and 40s are dying of heart disease, this is absolutely unacceptable."
During the session, healthcare leaders from various organisations underlined the need for strengthening the primary healthcare system in India and advocated a more humane approach in medicine.
In Bihar more than 100 children have died recently due to encephalitis. The tragedy has brought to the fore the critical condition of the country's healthcare system especially the primary healthcare system.
"I am happy to see that the journey to make everyone a part of the healthcare agenda has come so long. The child deaths in Bihar pose a question at the efficacy of our healthcare system. We are comfortably ignoring the states that require healthcare funds the most," said Kamal Narayan, CEO, Integrated Health & Wellbeing Council.
