UN Sustainable Development Goal 3: Good Health and Well-being

SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

UPES report · 3. Community outreach

3Health outreach in the community

UPES students and staff run health programmes in the communities around our Dehradun campuses, including free medical camps and menstrual health awareness drives.

  • Health care taken to neighbouring villages
  • Underserved families reached first

Impact

Students and staff take health care to people who find it hardest to reach, measured in blood units collected, women reached and children taught.

1,303units of blood collected in three days
1,200women reached with reusable menstrual cups
450+NSS student volunteers
100children at a school Health Day camp
  • Women from the university's ground staff and 13 villages received reusable menstrual cups, helping end period poverty.
  • About 300 students and 100 staff ran 5 km for healthy lifestyles and a drug-free society.
  • Girls aged 13 to 18 in Than village learned about reproductive and sexual health and received sanitary kits.
  • Villagers learned about hygiene and menstrual health through street theatre led by NSS volunteers.

The UPES Department of Social Outreach leads this work with NGOs, hospitals and local health workers.

Health care where it is hardest to reach

  • Free health camps. Doctors and nurses from the UPES Infirmary hold camps in underserved villages, including Misraspatti, Kharakhet and Dhaulas, checking blood pressure, blood sugar, heart rate and ENT health, and giving out medicines free.
  • Medical mobile van. With Sewa Bharti, a free mobile van has taken a doctor and medicines to nearby villages since 2008. Student volunteers help patients understand their medication and care.
  • Ending period poverty. Through Project Lakhon Khawahishen, UPES and the women-led organisation DivIn Pro give reusable menstrual cups to about 1,200 women from the university's ground staff and 13 villages.
  • NSS volunteers. NSS UPES, a unit of more than 450 student volunteers, runs blood donation and cleanliness drives in the community. On a village day during its 7-day camp, volunteers used nukkad natak (street theatre) to talk with villagers about hygiene, menstrual health and sustainability.
  • Keeping children safe. Under the Srijan programme, the UPES Legal Aid Clinic and CSR team ran "Good Touch, Bad Touch" body-safety sessions for children at government schools in Kharakhet, Misraspatti, Kandoli and Hariyawala.
  • Adolescent girls' health. The UPES Social Internship Team and student society GS3 worked with an NGO in Than village to talk with girls aged 13 to 18 about reproductive and sexual health, and handed out sanitary kits.

Promoting healthy living

  • Blood donation. A three-day drive across both campuses in April 2024, run with Mahant Indresh Hospital and IMA Dehradun, collected 1,303 units of blood.
  • Nutrition. For Poshan Maah, the School of Health Sciences & Technology trained Anganwadi and ASHA workers from Sahaspur Block in nutrition, food fortification and hygiene, with low-cost recipes using local ingredients.
  • Fitness. About 300 students and 100 staff ran the 5 km Run for Tomorrow marathon in September 2023 to promote healthy lifestyles and a drug-free society.
  • Menstrual equity. UPES student Ritika Panwar founded Project Yoni, an NGO that breaks stigma around menstrual health.
  • Nutrition street plays. In May to July 2026, B.Sc. Nutrition students took street plays into underserved communities to bust myths about anaemia and explain why fortified foods matter in everyday diets.
  • School health camp. As part of a 7-day NSS camp, UPES students ran a Health Day camp for about 100 children at a government school in Pondha, designed as hands-on activities rather than a lecture.
  • Anaemia-free campus. The "Anemia: An Unconquered Battle" campaign raises awareness of anaemia, which affects more than half of women of reproductive age in India, alongside on-campus health screening.
  • Cancer awareness. On 8 November 2024, NSS UPES held "Karkrog Janjagranam", a Vivechna session at the Old Amphitheatre in Bidholi. Guest speakers Charanpal Singh and Ghazala Shaheen explained the types and severity of cancer, why early detection matters, and how healthy living helps prevent it. Students, faculty and volunteers then wrote their messages of support on a Cancer Fight Wall.

Health awareness weeks and legal-aid outreach, 2024–25

ActivityOrganised byDate
Poshan Maah (nutrition month) workshopSchool of Health Sciences and Technology12–13 September 2024
Pharmacovigilance Week, on reporting adverse drug reactionsSchool of Health Sciences and Technology17–25 September 2024
World Pharmacist Day and National Nutrition MonthSchool of Health Sciences and Technology25 September 2024
63rd National Pharmacy WeekSchool of Health Sciences and Technology12–13 November 2024
Awareness camp in schools for adolescentsSchool of Law, Legal Aid Clinic5–11 November 2024
Workshop on crucial aspects of pre-natal and post-natal careSchool of Law, Legal Aid Clinic31 January 2025
"Chai Pe Charcha" community session on pre-natal and post-natal careSchool of Law, Legal Aid Clinic1 February 2025

Source: UPES Annual Report 2024–25[12]