Mumbai, 19th October, 2021: Mental health concerns are increasing at an alarming rate. 7.5% Indians are suffering from mental health disorders and this is estimated to reach 20% by the end of 2021. Mpower - a pioneer in Indian mental healthcare by Aditya Birla Education Trust, recently announced a call to action for Corporates based in India, urging them to take the #PledgeForMentalHealth. This was primarily to drive awareness among corporate enterprises around the mental wellbeing of their internal customers i.e. employees. Diverse Corporates came forward to show solidarity towards the cause and pledged to dedicate efforts to ensure mental wellbeing of their respective employees on a priority.
Leading organisations such as Aditya Birla Group, Pantaloons, Svatantra Microfin, Svatantra Micro Housing Finance, Aditya Birla World Academy, The Aditya Birla Integrated School, Aditya Birla Education Academy, Jolie's by Aditya Birla New Age (ABNA), Pawpstar (ABNA), Group M, Schbang, Asian Venture Philanthropy Network, Asia, Prompt Personnel, Party Panda, Acme Housing, Do Your Thing Network, Root Natural, Fruitbowl and Chal Rang De pledged to start an initiative to bring out the importance of mental health among their employees / stakeholders.
Some of these pledges included Webinars on emotional well-being, Employee health counselling, Incorporating mental health curriculum for students across all age groups, Get-together once a month to enjoy fun evening, "No questions asked" mental health leaves, Prioritisation of mental health over work, Formation of wellness committee, Downtime leaves & care packages, Create inclusive culture to safeguard employee mental health, Employee wellness programs, Fun Friday evenings, Hybrid working model, Mental wellness ambassador and so on. Mpower can always support the organisations to achieve their mental wellness goals in the form of a bespoke solution that works the best.
Addressing the state of mental health in India, Neerja Birla, Founder and Chairperson, Mpower, said, “It has been increasingly recognized that the pandemic and erratic work from home scenario has impacted the mental health of working professionals. Now more than ever, it has become imperative for organizations to promote holistic wellness. While we have made some progress in dealing with mental health issues, the stigma still persists and there’s a long way to go. Our objective with #PledgeForMentalHealth was to create awareness among Indian organizations, foster education and alleviate the stigma associated with this issue. We would like to extend our help to those suffering from mental health challenges and reassure them that we are here to help in whatever way we can.”
Recently, on the World Mental Health Day, Mpower also released an Impact Film. Here’s the link for it:
