Lifebuoy takes good hygiene habits to Kataragama

Saturday, 16 August 2014 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Inspired by the idea of ‘take blessings home, not illnesses’, Lifebuoy setup hand washing units and shower cubicles with soap throughout key locations in Kataragama from 5 to 12 July to help boost sanitary facilities for thousands of devotees flocking to the sacred site from far corners of the island.

Pilgrims line up to wash their hands at hand washing units set up by Lifebuoy in Kataragama

Every July, crowds throng to Kataragama, a pilgrimage town sacred to Buddhists, Hindus, and the indigenous Adhivasi community to pay homage to Lord Murugan or Skanda and witness the Kataragama Esala Perahera. Devotees from far as the North and East walk barefoot for weeks to reach Kataragama for the festival. The sheer number of pilgrims arriving has posed a challenge in providing adequate sanitary facilities especially during the months of July and August. Spiritual purity is linked to physical cleanliness. Thus, pilgrims avail themselves to a clean shower before entering the sacred site. Lifebuoy as a responsible brand that has taken on the fight against disease causing germs and bacteria offered to support devotees and organisers in Kataragama by installing shower cubicles at public shower areas for the benefit of devotees arriving from distant places. Lifebuoy installed hand-washing units with soap at all major locations where dansals were organised. These hand-washing units which carried messages informing the public to ensure maximum hygiene were part of the brand’s mission of saving millions of lives around the globe including Sri Lanka. Plates engraved with the message ‘Did you wash your hands before eating?’ were effectively used by Lifebuoy at Dansals to instill the good habit of washing hands before a meal. The gesture was received well by devotees and organisers alike as it reminded them about the importance of washing one’s hands before a meal.

Lifebuoy takes good hygiene habits to Kataragama

Pilgrims line up to wash their hands at hand washing units set up by Lifebuoy in Kataragama

Shower cubicles installed by Lifebuoy in Kataragama

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