Grassroots awareness efforts reach out to over 25,000 individuals

Jharsuguda (Odisha) February 28: Vedanta Aluminium, India’s largest producer of aluminium, observed National Road Safety Month in the vicinity of its operations in Jharsuguda by organizing an extensive month-long awareness drive for employees, business partners and the community at large. Aligned with the State Government’s ‘Sadak Suraksha, Parivar Raksha’ and the Ministry of Road Transport’s ‘Be a Road Safety Hero’ campaigns, the initiative reached out to more than 25,000 citizens in the district, emphasizing the critical importance of adhering to traffic regulations and upholding road safety norms.

As part of the campaign, Vedanta Aluminium organised several initiatives highlighting the importance of road safety, including awareness sessions and rallies on road safety, screening of short films dedicated to promoting road safety, and engaging ‘Nukkad Natak’ (street plays) performances across the town by actors playing the mythical characters Yamraj & Chitragupta, all of which were highly appreciated by the participants and audience members.

These awareness campaigns were conducted in key areas of Jharsuguda town, such as Beheramal, Badhieimunda, Sarbahal, Jharsuguda Bus Stand, in addition to several schools & colleges across the district. Notably, the road safety street play also took centre stage during the Republic Day Celebrations organized by the Jharsuguda District Administration. In addition to these efforts, first aid and emergency response training sessions were also conducted among employees and business partners across the Vedanta plant operations on road safety measures, along with free medical camps and defensive driving programs.

Several top officials were present to witness the company’s Road Safety Month initiatives, including Shri Priti Ranjan Ghadai, Minister of Rural and Skill Development, Ms. Aboli Sunil Naravane, District Collector and Magistrate, Jharsuguda, Shri Parmar Smit Parshottamdas, Superintendent of Police, Jharsuguda, Mr. Dinabandhu Sundhi, Regional Transport Officer, Jharsuguda, Mr. Lokanath Meher, Motor Vehicle Inspector, Jharsuguda, and Mr. Nirmal Kumar Mohaptara, Sub-Divisional Police Officer, Jharsuguda.

Reiterating the company’s safety- first culture, Mr. Sunil Gupta, COO, Vedanta Aluminium said, “At Vedanta Aluminium, the safety and wellbeing of our workforce and the community is of critical importance to us. We are committed to upholding the highest safety standards at our workplace and extend this culture of safety & care to our community as well. Through various innovative initiatives such as street plays and intensive training programs, we seek to instil the message of ‘Safety-first, Always’ amongst our workforce and are also working with the government and our communities towards building a safer tomorrow.”

Acknowledging the company’s efforts, Mr. Dinabandhu Sundhi, Regional Transport Officer, Jharsuguda said, “Such holistic awareness interventions contribute to safer communities. I thank Vedanta Aluminium for raising awareness on road safety in and around our Jharsuguda community and supporting the District Administration in bolstering road safety awareness across the region.”

Vedanta Aluminium has undertaken several initiatives to strengthen its safety-centric culture, including:

• Sankalp, a Safety Culture Transformation Programme implemented by Vedanta Aluminium across all its operations
• Augmented and Virtual Reality Training Centre to enhance safety training and offer an immersive and engaging experience
• Extensive digitalization of operations and processes to minimize human interaction with machines and Manufacturing Execution System to ensure 360-degree visibility of critical plant operations, allowing for remote decision-making through mobile applications.
• Video analytics for immediate detection of fire events and monitoring of employee adherence to safety standards, ensuring continuous plant safety
• An all-women fire-fighting team ‘Agnivahini’ at Jharsuguda, who have been meticulously trained to act efficiently and effectively in event of an emergency, offering off-site response support to the local administration and community
• Safety Stand Down, a programme wherein leadership teams engage with employees and business partners on various facets of health, safety and environment, to build a holistic safety-first culture
• Regular Mock Drills & Safety Awareness Sessions organized in collaboration with National Disaster Reduction Force (NDRF) and Odisha State Disaster Management Authority (OSDMA)

Fire, electrical & household-safety training sessions for school students and community members by employee volunteers of the company

Vedanta Aluminium, a business of Vedanta Limited, is India’s largest producer of aluminium, manufacturing more than half of India’s aluminium i.e., 2.29 million tonnes in FY23. It is a leader in value-added aluminium products that find critical applications in core industries. Vedanta Aluminium ranks 1st in the S&P Global Corporate Sustainability Assessment 2023 world rankings for the aluminium industry, a reflection of its sustainable development practices. With its world-class aluminium smelters, alumina refinery and power plants in India, the company fulfils its mission of spurring emerging applications of aluminium as the ‘Metal of the Future’ for a greener tomorrow.

About Vedanta Aluminium Business:

Vedanta Aluminium, a business of Vedanta Limited, is India’s largest producer of aluminium, manufacturing more than half of India’s aluminium i.e., 2.29 million tonnes in FY23. It is a leader in value-added aluminium products that find critical applications in core industries. Vedanta Aluminium ranks 1st in the S&P Global Corporate Sustainability Assessment 2023 world rankings for the aluminium industry. With its world-class aluminium smelters, alumina refinery and power plants in India, the company fulfils its mission of spurring emerging applications of aluminium as the ‘Metal of the Future’ for a greener tomorrow. www.vedantaaluminium.com