World Tuberculosis Day: Indian Government vows to destroy tuberculosis from the roots

The World Tuberculosis Day is observed every year on March 24. This special day emphasizes on unearthing solutions to eradicate the disease. The importance of the day is to alter the gear and expedite efforts to end TB once and for all. Keeping this objective in mind, the Indian Government launched a new USFDA approved Bedaquline drug which treats multi-drug resistant tuberculosis on March 21 2016. This groundbreaking initiative is taken by the government with the help of US based healthcare firm Johnson & Johnson (J&J). Bedaquline is developed by the pharma arm of J&J, i.e. Janssen Pharmaceuticals.

As per the World Health Organisation (WHO), Bedaquline has an unusual mechanism of action for the treatment of tuberculosis. The organisation has also issued instructions on how to use Bedaquline correctly.

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The Indian Health Ministry said that in the beginning, Bedaquline will be introduced in 104 districts in five states of India for the treatment of new drug resistant TB patients. The ministry also said that it will add 500 Cartridge Based Nucleic Acid Amplification (CNBAAT) test machines which detect TB in just two hours. At present, there are only 21 CNBAAT test machines operating in the country.

According to TB-India Report, 2015 by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, India has shocking number of Tuberculosis patients and 25 percent of all TB cases worldwide are reported in the country. The report also showed that out of 9 million global TB cases, 2.1 million were estimated to have occurred in India.

Revised National TB Control Programme (RNTCP), which is a social media and radio campaign run by the Indian Health Ministry, in the past years, has resulted in reducing TB cases and decreased mortality due to the disease. 

India is a core member of the World Health Assembly, which started the “End TB strategy” under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). This innovative strategy vows to reduce TB cases by 50 percent and deaths due to TB by 75 percent by 2025.

Meanwhile, on the account of World Tuberculosis Day, The Delhi Government announced three new schemes including one for providing livelihood to wives of poor patients who died due to tuberculosis. The schemes include opening of TB control services for homeless population and Directly Observed Treatment (DOT) Centres for Multi Drug Resistant (MDR) TB patients.

In the last few years, the Indian Government is doing every bit to eliminate tuberculosis just like it has eliminated Polio. The launch of Bedaquline drug is surely going to fuel the government’s objective in coming years.   

What are the customs and traditions related to Holi?

Holi Greetings from Lazoi.com

A custom or tradition is a long-established action or pattern of behaviour in a community or group of people, often one that has been handed down from generation to generation. So is the case with Holi traditions and customs. It is a festival that has its roots in age old beliefs and Indian mythology.

Holi Bonfires

Holika Dahan or the lighting of bonfire takes place on the eve of Holi. The day is also popularly called Chhoti Holi or the Small Holi. On the Vasant Panchami day, almost 40 days before the Holi festival, a wooden log is kept in a central public place. People go on throwing twigs, dried leaves, and branches of trees on to that log which gradually grows into a sizable heap. When it is time for Holika Dahan an effigy of Holika (made of a combustible material) and Prahlad (a non-combustible effigy) is kept on the logs. On the night of Phalguna Purnima, it is set alight amidst the chanting of Rakshoghna Mantras of the Rig Veda.

Holi Milan or Baithaks

Many days or sometimes weeks before the actual Holi-day, people sit together and sing Holi songs in Holi Milans. These are musical soirees or gatherings involving traditional Holi music. The love story of Radha Krishna also features in these songs. Hori are the special type of Holi folk songs which are also sung in these musical get-to-gethers.

Regional Holi Celebrations

This festival of colours is played in most parts of the country. The Holi celebrations have adapted a different regional flavour in different parts of the country. Apart from the usual tradition of playing with coloured powder and water, Holi also involves fun filled processions of folk songs and dances. There is a sense of abandonment and an underlying festive spirit to be seen in everyone.

Although Holi is mostly observed in north India, it's celebrated with a special enthusiasm at Mathura, Vrindavan, Nandgaon, and Barsana. The reason for the same is the close association of these towns with Lord Krishna. Holi played by local Bhil tribesmen (of Madhya Pradesh), by rural Maharashtrians (where Holi is known as Rangpanchami) and the Holi festivities of Rajasthan (especially Jaisalmer) deserve a special mention.

Exchanging Gifts

There is a popular tradition of greeting each other with Holi gifts like Holi colours and traditional Indian sweets like Gujiya, Gazak, Mathri, Malpuas and Dry fruits on Holi. This is a festival which encourages the feeling of universal brotherhood. There is no differentiation between friends and enemies on Holi. Everyone wishes every other person and plays Holi with him/her.

Bhang in Drinks and Sweets

Making and drinking bhang ki thandai is another very popular custom of Holi. This drink is made by mixing bhang with thandai (an Indian milk shake). Bhang is made from female cannabis or hemp plant; it can be understood to be a homemade drug. People also mix bhang in sweets and other preparations being offered to guests.

Playing With Colours on Holi

Abeer and Gulal are the names for Holi colours. These are the traditional and naturally made Holi colours. People also play with coloured water using pichkaris and other squirt guns on Badi Holi or Dhulendi. This coloured water is prepared using Tesu flowers.

The process involves gathering these flowers from trees, grinding them, and mixing them with water to produce orange-yellow coloured water. Another traditional Holi object now rarely seen is a red powder filled in Lakh bowls which are broken to spread colour on everyone. Though these days we have lost the touch with natural colours and synthetic or artificial colours are being increasingly used on Holi.

These are some of the more popular Holi customs. Holi is a festival that speaks of trust, love and goodwill. This is probably the reason that all its traditions are also representative of this feeling of brotherhood and the victory of good over evil.

Wish you a very Happy Holi from Team Lazoi

Lazoi Lifecare: The most promising healthcare start-up in India

Start-ups! They are everywhere, isn’t it? The concept has taken the Indian industrial sector by storm. Today, we can see at least one Start-up Company in every single sector in India. The biggest beneficiary of the Start-up boom is the Indian e-commerce sector, where players like Flipkart, Snapdeal and Amazon have transformed the way Indians shop. Not lagging behind is the healthcare sector. In fact, in the last couple of years there have been a number of start-ups which are transforming the Indian healthcare sector for better. This space, which was surprisingly not touched for nearly two decades, has suddenly found renewed interest. So much has already been done for the change that the blend of healthcare market and digital revolution has successfully plugged the holes in the disorganized health care system of India. 

Credit for improved medical sector goes to various healthcare start-ups in India. Even the Indian Government has woken up to the fact that online healthcare companies hold the key for an ailing medical sector. The ideology of these promising healthcare start-ups in India is simple- Bridge the gap between doctors and patients; bring them closer. However, it’s not easy as it sounds. In India, where doctor patient ratio is worse than 1:2000, where the country sees 253 deaths, per 100,000 people due to various factors, turning this ideology into results was indeed tough. But with sheer hard-work and perseverance, these online healthcare companies have managed to pull-off something which was not taken care of for nearly 20 years.

Lazoi Lifecare, one of the top ranked healthcare start-ups in India has played a pivotal role in revamping the Indian healthcare sector. The online healthcare company, which was founded in 2012, has already achieved remarkable feats in near four years of journey. Starting from meagre booking instant appointment with doctor service, this online healthcare solution provider has taken big leaps in the last year and a half. Now along with booking online appointment with doctors on their panel, one can also bookhealth packages and diagnostic lab tests with hefty discounts on offer.

Mr. Suvro Ghosh, Founder of Lazoi said, “Our aim is to eliminate the distance and time in receiving the right medical treatment with the option of prior booking through a single-window concept. We have digitised the network which empowers patients to access affordable healthcare services. Moreover, the diagnostic lab tests for which patients have to run from pillar to post just to get them done can easily book on our website. One of the benefits of booking online diagnostic tests is that patients will receive timely reports in an absolutely hassle-free manner. Plus, we have got these amazing health packages for everyone; employees, families, individuals, corporate, senior citizens etc.”

For patients, who are from far flung areas, the concept of online doctor consultation works well. With the comfort of their home, they can consult any doctor of their choosing online. Lazoi, which ranks amongst top 5 healthcare start-ups in India, is the first to offer such service. In short, you can get access to a mirage of healthcare services from just one website. That in itself is nothing short of incredible.

For many years, healthcare was a stinging problem in India, with no promising future and long-term solutions. Not even the government was able to deliver. The lack of expenditure on healthcare industry only added fuel to the fire, until the likes of Suvro Ghosh came forward and gave us a new vision. The challenge however for these respected healthcare start-ups in India will be to get the right funding and connect with the right audience. The change in the Indian healthcare industry is already visible and this paradigm shift will help both patients and doctors achieve the highest level of satisfaction. 

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