Biocon Foundation Sets up Hostel in Haliyal with V.R. Deshpande Memorial Trust to Support Skilling of Rural Women

Bengaluru, Karnataka, India: February 20, 2017

Biocon Foundation, the CSR arm of Bengaluru-based Biocon Ltd., Asia’s premier biopharmaceuticals company, has invested Rs 1 crore to set up an ultra-modern hostel for women in Haliyal, Uttara Kannada. The hostel built for the Canara Bank Deshpande Rural Self Employment Training Institute will provide accommodation to women from the weaker sections of society who are undergoing vocational training at the institute.

Shri R.V. Deshpande, Minister for Large & Medium Industries & Infrastructure Development, Government of Karnataka and Ms Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Founder, Biocon Foundation, inaugurated the hostel facility today. The ~8,000 sq. ft. hostel, which can accommodate 65 women at a time, has well-furnished dormitories, waiting room, dining facilities for the trainees in addition to rooms for faculty.

Speaking at the inaugural ceremony, Shri R.V. Deshpande, Minister for Large & Medium Industries & Infrastructure Development, Government of Karnataka, stated, "I am happy that Biocon Foundation came forward and extended their full support in building the hostel for women. I am thankful to Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw and Biocon Foundation for supporting us in our journey of promoting skill development among rural women."

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Founder of Biocon Foundation and CMD of Biocon said, "Biocon Foundation is pleased to partner with V.R. Deshpande Memorial Trust for providing vocational training to rural women. This initiative builds on the Foundation's efforts to empower women through skill development. I hope the new hostel facility at the training institute will encourage women in the region to embrace this initiative which has the potential to provide them financial independence. I congratulate Canara Bank Deshpande Rural Self Employment Training Institute for their contribution to socio-economic development of the region."

The Canara Bank Deshpande Rural Self Employment Training Institute, jointly sponsored by V.R. Deshpande Memorial Trust and Canara Bank, has been established to provide intensive vocational training to rural women with the aim of making them self-employable. Around 60 courses have been designed involving 1-6 weeks of intensive training. Biocon Foundation has funded the setting up of the women’s hostel at the institute to ensure safe and secure residential facility for women undergoing training.

Biocon Foundation has been making an enduring impact in enabling social and economic inclusion through its health, education and community development programs, for over a decade now. The endeavour has been to create a comprehensive and integrated ecosystem that can deliver affordable and effective healthcare to underserved rural and urban communities in India. Its efforts in education have been directed at improving the quality of education primarily in rural schools.

About Biocon Foundation:
Biocon Foundation, the Corporate Social Responsibility arm of Biocon is relentlessly working to empower marginalised communities since 2005. We believe, our corporate social responsibility lies in creating a comprehensive ecosystem that can deliver effective and affordable healthcare solutions. We also support education initiatives that can impart better learning to the underprivileged students in rural schools and empower communities by providing proper infrastructure for self - sustained villages with health centre, community center, schools, sanitation, water and source of light. With a vision of reaching the unreached, Biocon Foundation in 2016, scaled up its programs to newer geographies, in Rajasthan, Assam and Nagaland. The success of providing affordable healthcare solutions in Karnataka, led Biocon Foundation to collaborate with Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Rajasthan, to run three of its Primary Healthcare Centres, with an aim of improving the primary healthcare facilities for the under privileged communities. We plan to make the PHC a smart health centre by introducing eLAJ, an electronic health record system introduced this year by Biocon Foundation.

For further information or query, please reach out to:

Biocon Media Contact
Seema Ahuja  Head-Corporate Communications  T: +91-80-2808-2222  Email: seema.ahuja@biocon.com	Chidananda BA  Deputy Manager, Corporate Communications  T: +91-80-2808-2221  Email: chidananda.ba@biocon.com