UST Joins Hands with NiKshay Mitra; Provides Food Kits to TB Patients

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: 

In line with the Nikshay Mitra Initiative under the TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan of the National Tuberculosis Control Programme (NTEP), the corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative of UST, a leading AI and digital transformation solutions company, has launched a six-month programme to provide food kits to tuberculosis patients in Thiruvananthapuram and Ernakulam districts.

As part of the initiative, UST has begun providing nutritious food kits to tuberculosis patients for the next six months, under the NiKshay Mitra program of the TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan. NiKshay is part of India’s mission to make the country tuberculosis-free by 2025, through the promotion of community participation. 

Kerala has made significant strides in tuberculosis (TB) control, yet challenges such as malnutrition, comorbidities, drug resistance, and diagnostic bottlenecks continue to affect patient outcomes. To address some of these immediate needs, the state has identified priority areas where targeted support can create measurable impact—most notably, providing nutritional assistance to 6,800 TB patients across 14 districts. In line with this need, UST has stepped forward to support TB patients in Thiruvananthapuram and Ernakulam by supplying nutritious food kits as part of its commitment to strengthening community health and well-being.

By being a part of NiKshay Mitra, UST will support the initiative by providing nutritious food kits to TB patients for six months. The company’s CSR team will distribute a total of 600 kits (100 kits per month) at District TB Cell, Vanchiyoor, Trivandrum and District TB Centre, Karuvelippady, Ernakulam.

“Extending support to the needy takes a whole new leap with the UST corporate social responsibility team now partnering with the Pradhan Mantri TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan. Associating with its NiKshay Mitra project, we are proud that we have got the opportunity to provide nutritional food kits to tuberculosis patients in Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi for the next six months,” said Sunil Balakrishnan, Chief Values Officer and Global Head for Centre operations, UST.

The food kits include brown rice, wheat flour, ragi powder, urad dal, green gram, skimmed milk powder, coconut/gingelly/ sunflower oil, ghee, groundnut, cashew, dates, and Bengal gram.

At the function organised at the District TB Centre, Thiruvananthapuram, a UST team led by Sunil Balakrishnan, Chief Values Officer and Centre Head for Global Operations; Harikrishnan Mohankumar Jayasree, Senior Director Workplace Management;  Vineeth Mohanan, CSR Lead; to announce the partnership with a team comprising Dr Dhanuja V, District TB Officer; Dr Neena P S Consultant, STDC; Dr Anoj, District Programme Manager, District Health and Family Welfare; Dr Aparna Mohan, Consultant, WHO; and Elizabeth Joy, Consultant, KHPT from District TB Cell, Thiruvananthapuram.