Dettol Ka Dhula Kumbh Mela: A melange of sanitation and salvation

In order to promote healthy hand-washing habits, The 'Kam Paani Mein Zyada Suraksha' initiative was executed during Nashik Kumbh Mela 2015.

Water is a scarce resource and ought to be used judiciously. And, the use of clean water is a must for good health. But, India is a land where people love to participate in festivals such as the Kumbh Mela that takes place every 12 years, at different locations within the country. A mass gathering for such purpose, especially as it is a religious event, increases the demand for water, which often results in its shortage for that particular city's population. Besides, unhygienic conditions pose a health risk to devotees.

As part of its nationwide initiative Dettol Banega Swachh India, Dettol tied up with McCann during the Nashik Kumbh Mela, which was held from August 27 to September 25, 2015, to create a unique innovation titled 'Kam Paani Mein Zyada Suraksha'. The Purna Kumbh Mela 2015, which claimed to have hosted approximately 30 million pilgrims from across the country over a period of 58 days, saw the unique activity being executed during the month of August and September last year. The brand's intent was to educate devotees about healthy hand-washing habits especially before eating.

For this purpose, the brand deployed as many as 100 on-ground 'Dettol Hand Wash Agents' at places like sadhu grams, sewa grams, and snan areas (bathing areas). The agents distributed 66,000 Dettol hand sanitiser packs, and ensured that people washed their hands with them.

Besides this, a variety of media mix including radio, leaflets and public announcements were used to convey the message of following healthy hand-washing habits. Radio Vishwas was used to advertise the activation on radio. Volunteers distributed flyers that carried information about healthy hand-washing, to help spread the message, 'Clean hands means less diseases, more safety'. Several units of bio-digester toilets were also installed to provide an eco-friendly solution for open defecation.

Apart from saving millions of people from diseases, the brand claimed to have saved more than 33 lakh litres of water for two million Nashik residents. This was achieved by installing 100 water pumps that reduced the amount of water needed for hand wash by more than half.

Speaking about the initiative, Nitish Kapoor, regional director, RB South Asia, says, "As a global leader in consumer health and hygiene, our purpose is to improve hygiene and sanitation in the daily lives of our consumers. Kumbh Mela is the largest congregation of humans anywhere on earth, which poses a huge challenge for sanitation because of the temporary influx of people in vast numbers. RB is proud to have partnered with Nashik Kumbh to provide expertise on hygiene and behaviour change, with on-the-ground support of volunteers to educate pilgrims about the importance of hand-washing."

RB, which has its headquarters in the UK, Singapore, Dubai and Amsterdam, claims to be the world's leading consumer health and hygiene company, with operations in over 60 countries.