Aamir's Satyamev Jayate Impact in Real Life! - Page 8

NAGPUR: Following a call by the Federation of Sales & Medical Representatives Associations of India (FMRAI), its Maharashtra unit, theMaharashtra State Medical Representatives Association (MSMRA) will be observing a one day protest next Tuesday. The association will conduct street corner meetings and other programmes, and submit a memorandum to the government through the collector.

The Medical Representatives (MRs) are under attack by the Food and Drug Administration(FDA), hospitals, government, media and the society over illicit supply of drugs for female foeticide. Several state governments have banned or restricted the entry of MRs into hospitals and clinics. The May 27 episode of Satyamev Jayate programme anchored by Aamir Khan had labelled MRs as 'agents' of drug companies and persons who bribe doctors to write prescription that will benefit companies.

The TV show led to a sting operation by an electronic channel, that led to a ban on MRs in KEM hospital in Mumbai. MRs have also come under public scrutiny as if they were carrying cash in their bags to pay doctors.

A MSMRA press statement says that it is sad that instead of exploring the real cause of use of sex determination drugs, where pharma companies are promoting 'pay for prescription' and 'pay for trade', MRs are being wrongly targeted. The release also calls for a need to examine the issues objectively. In the name of sales closing every month, most well-known drug companies are raising false invoices in the name of hospitals, institutions and nursing homes without their knowledge and offloading these goods in the market through 'hawkers', creating a parallel black market, the MSMRA claimed.

However, despite FMRAI's demand for an investigation of records maintained by companies time and again, the central and state drug control administration and ministries of health have taken no cognisance of the facts and the unhealthy practices continue unabated.

Every year, drug companies are spending huge money in the name of CMEs, seminars, foreign trips for doctors and their family members, costly gifts like cars, air conditioners and even prepaid cash cards. But the government is reluctant to take any action against companies, the MRs allege.

As far as spiralling prices of medicines are concerned, it is not brand or generic drugs which are responsible for high price of medicines, it is due to the government policy, say the MRs, for which they should not be held responsible.

Source - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/MRs-too-begin-awareness-campaign-on-female-foeticide/articleshow/14654928.cms

The General Service Office (GSO) of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) India, which operates from a tiny municipal school in Byculla, was bursting at its seams as nearly 100 AA members and volunteers attended to a torrent of calls after a national TV show flashed AA's helpline numbers and website details, on Sunday.

In its ninth episode which first aired at 11am, Satyamev Jayate focused on alcoholism and featured interviews with experts and recovering alcoholics, including AA member Laxman. As the show's producer and host Aamir Khan announced the number on air, AA offices across the country braced themselves.

Gajanan, Rotated trustee of AA India who was at the AA office in Mumbai, said, "The number was first flashed on the show at 11.37am and at 11.40am we received the first call.Within 20 minutes, the AA website had crashed. At 12.30am, all telephone lines were jammed and missed calls started piling up. Within the next hour, we received 8,600 missed calls." By 4pm, AA centers across India had received 13,000 calls which jumped up to 28,000 by 7 in the evening after the show aired. At the time of going to print, More than 31,000 calls were recorded. 👏

Alcoholics Anonymous is a fellowship of recovering alcoholics who follow the universally accepted 12 Step program for recovery from addiction. Mr. Gnyaneshwar, general manager, AA India, said, "After a lot of groundwork, the show's research team came to the conclusion that AA programme is a reliable recovery source for alcoholism that is available pan-India and completely free of cost."

In India, there are at present more than 1,100 groups with approximately 30,000 members. But members feel this is just a small proportion of the actual number of alcoholics who are suffering from a lack of awareness about a recovery programme that actually works.

Agreeing that the show is the biggest boost that the Alcoholics Anonymous India fellowship has ever received, the members say the biggest difference will be felt in parts of the country where AA self-help groups are yet to be set up. Gajanan said, "Many areas such as Assam, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Bihar and large parts of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh do not have AA groups. Once we receive calls from a place where a self-help group is missing, we will send a team of AA members who will help the locals set up a self-help group to conduct regular meetings and help alcoholics practice the recovery programme."

One of the most lasting effects of the show is in the form of the donations that are generated via viewers who wish to contribute to the cause. But AA India politely declined the monetary help because the fellowship, in principle, does not accept donations from outside sources. All AA activities are funded by members of the fellowship only, said, chairman, public information, AA India.

He added, "We will pool in our own resources to reach out to alcoholics across the country. We are expecting to spend a lot of money in the next six months to reach out to alcoholics." Alcoholics Anonymous is rumored to have members from all strata of society, including the rich and powerful. Here again, due to the principle of anonymity, members' full names & identities are never declared.

Eventually, members feel the biggest contribution of the show will be in creating awareness that alcoholism is not just a 'bad habit', it is a full-fledged disease which has a reliable cure.

Elated over the tremendous response, AA members in the city are gearing up for a busy week. Similar AA call centers have been set up in Chennai, Hyderabad, Pune, Guwahati, Chandigarh, Kolkata, Calicut, Delhi, Bangalore and Nagpur, among other cities. The show will be aired 14 times in the coming week in eight different languages, and the calls are expected to keep pouring in. AA members are ready to cooperate with government agencies to keep the momentum going even after the show stops airing.

Clarion calls

To streamline the process, a 15-member team of volunteers took down basic details from callers, who included alcoholics themselves or family members and well-wishers

Their numbers were then passed on to nearly 100 AA members who sat in the corridors of the municipal school in Byculla from which the AA office operates

The members answered all queries and connected the caller to AA members in their vicinity who in turn will ensure that the alcoholic attends a local AA meeting within the next 48 hours to begin his recovery.

As per the latest news, people have started attending AA meetings in various groups all over India. 👏
AA assures Anonymity to all people having a Desire to stop drinking.

If you know of someone who has a drinking problem & needs help guide him to AA the contact details are as follows:-
SMS – AAA (SPACE) YOUR NAME TO 56363
CALL- 09022771011
E-MAIL – gsoindia@gmail.com
Web- www.aagsoindia.org

For a serialised version of AA's Big Book, pick up your copy of DNA every Tuesday.

Source - http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report_satyamev-jayate-gets-aa-drunk-on-its-own-success_1709259

Close on the heels of exposure of a string of unwanted womb removal operations in Aamir Khan's TV show 'Satyamev Jayate', Chhattisgarh government has suspended registration of nine doctors for allegedly conducting surgeries to remove uterus without proper medical reasons.

INDORE: There seems to be no let-up in incidents of child abuse in the city. Increasing number of cases are coming out of the closet, especially after the telecast an episode on child abuse in the popular TV show Satyamev Jayate.

The 24-hour Childline service, working for the children in distress, has been receiving complaints from the victims and their parents.

A 15-year-old girl from Dewas had called up Childline Indore and lodged a complaint against her cousin. She was reportedly being abused by him for quite sometime. In her complaint, the girl claimed that her cousin, who too is a minor, was molesting her. "The victim was hesitant to inform her family about the incident," city coordinator of Childline, Deepesh, said.

He also said, "We contacted the family of the victim immediately and informed them about the abuse. The whole family, along with the girl and the accused, was counselled later by our team of experts,"

He said since the accused is a minor, he was warned and advised against such indulgence.

A similar case was reported from Mhow where a schoolgirl was molested by a family friend. The incident took place some two years ago, but came to the fore only after telecast of the episode. The family called up Childline, Indore, and provided the details of the person in question. "We are doing our best to trace the accused in this case" Deepesh said.

Source - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/indore/Child-abuse-cases-coming-out-of-the-closet/articleshow/14516352.cms