86 LifePositive | FEBRUARY 2018
AAI provides holistic
care for cancer patients
The number of cancer cases is increasing
rapidly in India. Medical experts estimate that
by 2030, there will be nearly two million new
cancer cases diagnosed in the country. These
may comprise a large segment of paediatric
oncology. To fight this epidemic, Airports
Authority of India (AAI) has undertaken several
initiatives. As part of its corporate social
responsibility, AAI has been providing monetary
assistance to ensure timely treatment of
underprivileged cancer patients. Juhu Airport
of Airports Authority of India recently signed an
MoU with the Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai.
Juhu Airport has given 1.32 crore as financial aid towards the procurement of specialised equipment needed for the treatment of destitute children suffering from cancer. Juhu Airport supported Tata Memorial Centre (TMC) through a provision of rupees one crore for the complete financial adoption of underprivileged children suffering from cancer. An emergency fund of rupees five lakhs was provided by AAI to help with the treatment of an underprivileged child diagnosed with early stage cancer. AAI also contributed 31.38
lakh for the procurement of Tape Station High-
Throughput machine for the Department of
POSITIVE FOCUSMed-Oncology-Molecular Laboratory, TMC, to
make diagnosis of cancer more effective and to
enable doctors to give targeted therapies in this
era of precision medicine.
This is not the only instance of AAI providing
assistance to ensure timely treatment for
cancer patients. Earlier this year, AAI decided
to upgrade the pathology division of Cachar
Cancer Hospital and Research Center, Silchar,
Assam. The cancer hospital provides low cost
services to the underprivileged and low-income
population hailing from the Barak Valley and
the Dima Hasao district of Assam as well as the
neighbouring north-eastern states of Tripura,
Manipur, Meghalaya, and Mizoram. Airport
Authority is providing a financial assistance of `
76.05 lakh.
Commenting on AAI’s initiative to provide
assistance in ensuring better medical facilities
to the underprivileged, Dr Guruprasad
Mohapatra, Chairman, AAI, said, “As a
successful PSU, we feel morally responsible
for ensuring a holistic lifestyle for the less
privileged in our society. Our initiatives in
north-east India, cochlear implant assistance,
cervical screening programme for the less
privileged women, and now, our collaboration
with Tata Memorial Hospital are testimony to
our commitment to the cause.”
AAI has entrusted its women’s welfare
organisation, Kalyanmayee, with the
responsibility of conducting cervical cancer
screening camps at various locations
throughout the country. As a pilot project
under this initiative, screening camps have
been organised in various low-income
clusters in Delhi, like Swami Vivekanand Basti,
Kanakadurga Basti in RK Puram, and slums in
Seelampur and Chanakyapuri, earlier this year.Signing of MoU between AAI and TMC, Mumbai