GUWAHATI, May 22 - Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) has stated that it has extended its collaboration with the United Nations Children�s Fund (UNICEF) to support delivery of essential hygiene products to tea plantation workers based in Assam for use during the current COVID-19 pandemic.
The collaboration will benefit families residing in the tea estates of the region and will facilitate the reach of key communication assets and availability of essentials such as soaps and toilet cleaners for tea plantation workers.
The initiative focuses on enhancing awareness related to COVID-19 amongst the tea plantation workers and local communities and on helping them take necessary precautions to stay safe during the pandemic.
Training modules and short videos created by HUL to train frontline healthcare workers in tea estates on response and containment measures related to COVID-19 will be developed.
Sharing details of the initiative, Sanjiv Mehta, chairman and MD of Hindustan Unilever Limited said, �The tea industry is one of the oldest industries in India � a mainstream industry of the north-east region and one of the largest employers in India�s organised sector. As India�s largest tea company, we are committed to help keep those working in tea plantations safe and our partnership with UNICEF aims to do just that.�
UNICEF has been playing a key role in the tea plantations since 2010 through various interventions and the primary focus has been on the well-being of children and women.
Dr Yasmin Ali Haque, India Representative, UNICEF, India said, �Around two million people work in the Indian tea industry, most of them residing in the tea estates. UNICEF has been working in tea gardens since 2010 through Indian Tea Association to improve working and living conditions of plantation workers. Protecting this population from Covid-19 infection is one of our highest priorities. With HUL�s support, we are confident of improving awareness levels and capacity building of healthcare workers across tea estates by helping them fight this pandemic.�
In early April 2020, HUL committed Rs 100 crore towards helping India fight the Covid-19 pandemic. As part of this effort, HUL has rolled out many initiatives to ensure that citizens of India across all walks of life have access to essential products such as soaps, sanitizers and toilet cleaners, and understand the causes and implications of the virus through simple and direct communication.
