NEW DELHI: Godrej Consumer Products has launched a new nationwide campaign with the tagline ‘Subah Bolo Good Knight’ to create awareness about the seriousness of dengue.
GCPL business head - India and SAARC Sunil Kataria said, “Understanding that awareness around the dengue menace is the need of the day, we commissioned a survey to gauge its prevalence. The report has revealed startling facts, the most significant being the vulnerability of kids to get affected. Based on the findings we intend to launch ‘Subah Bolo Good Knight,’ an awareness campaign that aims to reach out to 10 million school-going kids across the country. We aspire to sensitise parents to adopt preventive measures against the spread of dengue.”
The campaign will run through the TV, print and social media platforms. However, GPCL wants to run the campaign in the rural areas through the usage of mobile phones and Facebook. “As above-the-line activities are not much effective in the villages, the company is planning for below-the-line activities and also focusing on around 3,000,000 rural outlets through hoardings and billboards. In the rural areas, shopkeepers are playing effective role in convincing consumers. Thus, we are focusing on them to aware people about the disease,” Kataria added.
GPCL and Nielsen conducted a survey across 16 cities, from metros to tier-1 cities. This was to assess perceptions of dengue, its causes and how people in the country cope with the disease. Based on that survey, the Good Knight Dengue Awareness Report reveals that 85 per cent of the respondents know dengue is a life-threatening disease, but around 92 per cent population is unaware that day mosquitoes cause dengue. What’s even more startling is that 80 per cent population agrees that mosquitoes are visible during the day but only eight per cent use any repellent format during daytime.
The report conducted further states that 76 per cent parents think that children are most vulnerable to dengue, while 70 per cent are of the opinion that their child was more prone to dengue in their classrooms but only 28 per cent mothers believe that their child’s school uses mosquito repellents in the classes. Further, 87 per cent mothers want the child’s school to take the responsibility of educating children about the risks of dengue.
“As a conscious corporate, it’s not only our duty but our responsibility to champion the cause of eradicating dengue. I would urge each and every Indian to collectively confront the spread of this disease by creating more awareness,” Kataria added.
