Bengaluru, July 28, 2018: Gleneagles Hospitals organized bike rally to create awareness about road safety among general public.
The rally was flagged-off at 7:30 AM from Kanteerva Indoor Stadium, where over 400 riders, including members of the Beard Bulleteers, Team Shivasainya, Biking Buddies , Riders 365, Bangalore Bullet Club, RX Owners Club, Bikers Of India, RBDC and Liedor Riding Gear came together to support the cause. The group covered a distance of over 30 kms to BGS Gleneagles Hospitals, Kengeri. The rally saw participants turning up in big numbers to discuss and raise awareness about the need for road safety. The bike rally was flagged by Mr. Shivanand Patil, Minister for Health & Family Welfare Department, Government of Karnataka and Mr. Sampath Raj, Mayor of Bangalore. On reaching the destination, doctors from the emergency and trauma team of BGS Gleneagles Hospitals demonstrated Basic Life Support (BLS) measures to be taken in case of a medical emergency such as road accidents.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Sampath Raj, Mayor of Bangalore said," Bike rally was initiated to support the idea of following road safety measures listed by the central and state government. It was our intention to gather volunteers and spread the message of road safety, and attempt to bring about a positive change in the mindset of people and thereby hopefully reduce instances of reckless driving. Each individual must play the part by following traffic rules to avoid fatal injuries and accidents.”
Reports estimate that more than 4000 people are killed in road accidents in Bangalore every year. A bulk of this figure occurs among vulnerable road users such as motorcyclists, pedestrians and cyclists. A heterogeneous traffic mix that includes high-speed vehicles sharing the road space with vulnerable road users as well as unsafe road infrastructure and vehicles that are in poor condition all contribute to the high fatality rates seen on India’s roads.
Ms. Shailaja Suresh, CEO, BGS Gleneagles Hospitals, stated, “We at Gleneagles Hospitals are devoted to spread awareness on the need for road safety. We constantly witness numerous patients being brought in on account of road accidents. During such emergencies, every second matters. Therefore, we are committed to bringing accident figures down and keeping our roads safe through our regular initiatives on road safety; we hope to continue raising awareness on the issue.”