World news story

UK backed initiative in India for women burn survivors

Tamil Nadu inspires national action in one of the most under-serviced areas of action on violence against women.

UK-India

This week Tamil Nadu will host a first of its kind state policy roundtable that will work toward more holistic support for women survivors of burn violence. The roundtable on 21 January is organised by Chennai-based NGO, PCVC and part of a national initiative supported by the British Deputy High Commission (BDHC) Chennai.

Bharat Joshi, British Deputy High Commissioner Chennai said:

I’m very proud that we are working with PCVC on this path-breaking initiative to share knowledge and good practice and to create new public, private, civil society partnerships to help women burn survivors get better support. This is part of our ongoing support to preventing and tackling violence against women across India where we have helped build awareness or capacity and ensure greater social participation on a wide range of issues.

Dr. Prasanna Gettu, CEO of Chennai’s PCVC said:

We’re grateful to the BDHC Chennai for their support. Thanks to years of visionary leadership from Chennai’s Kilpauk Medical College and Hospital in particular and more broadly Tamil Nadu’s Health Department, PCVC has evolved a model that matches sensitive medical support with sensitive psycho-social support to women survivors of burn violence. Through this new initiative, we’re delighted to be able to draw on and feed into knowledge, experience and insights not just from Tamil Nadu but across India.

Representatives from the Tamil Nadu health, social welfare, police, legal services departments will participate. Others include medical and non-medical representatives from public, private and civil society in Tamil Nadu interested in more holistic support for women burn survivors.

Further information

The roundtable in Chennai is on Saturday 21 January at The Apartment Loft, 1st Floor, Park Hyatt, Guindy.

Media are invited to attend the inaugural at 1000-1030 hrs, followed by press interaction.

The new initiative to develop holistic support for women survivors of burn violence, backed by the BDHC Chennai and led by Chennai-based NGO PCVC has, in 2016, already supported research and knowledge-sharing among practitioners in four states – New Delhi, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Telangana. To be followed by policy discussion at state-level in Jan/Feb 2017 and national-level in New Delhi in March 2017. It is aimed at building understanding of burn incidence, reporting, recording, medical and post-medical management and building more holistic psycho-social support for women survivors. For more information please visit here.

For media queries, please contact:

Rudy Fernandez,
Head, Press & Public Affairs,
BDHC Chennai
Mob: +91-9840340282

Mail to: Rudy Fernandez

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Published 18 January 2017