Beauty with a purpose focuses on immunisation

Millions of children in India, even today, are at risk of life-threatening diseases because there are low levels of awareness about the need for immunisation in the country. And that's what Anannya Sarmah, who was crowned Sanofi Pasteur Miss Beauty for Health during the Pond's Femina Miss India 2013 pageant, is working on right now. She is leading the brand's 'I for Immunisation' campaign that aims to bring together diverse groups — doctors, citizens, NGOs, media houses, corporates — to spread greater awareness about immunisation. 

Dr Stephan Barth, country head of Sanofi Pasteur, says, "We are delighted with Anannya's commitment and are very happy to have her as the face of this initiative. The road is long, but the journey thus far has been encouraging and fulfilling. Our rural immunisation awareness efforts with our partner NGO CRY (Child Rights and You) have contributed towards complete immunisation of 20 tribal villages in the Narmada district of Gujarat in 2012-2013. To increase awareness in urban areas, we're now running a programme with parents and teachers of municipal schools in major Indian cities." Adds Anannya, "The most wonderful part is that all our awareness activities take inspiration from ideas that are contributed by the citizens of the country. That is really the essence of I for Immunisation — individual efforts for a common cause."

Anannya Sarmah — crowned Sanofi Pasteur Miss Beauty for Health during the Pond's Femina Miss India 2013 pageant — is spreading awareness about immunisation