As with many rapidly growing international economies, India has been looking to improve its healthcare sector to meet the demands of the people. A mammoth effort for any expanding nation, but with India’s population on the precipice of 1.4 billion and several multilateral interests influencing where and what the government focuses on, it has been the hard work of organisations like KL University that has met the healthcare needs of India’s western villages. As part of the Unnat Bharat Abhiyan, a flagship programme from the Ministry of Human Resource Development to enrich rural India, KL University and Cartula aim to improve the health outcomes of communities in the region.

Initial meetings were conducted throughout October by John Lane and Vimal Prakash to best designate Cartula’s role in the assistance of these underappreciated villages. The Smart Villages Initiative is creating and upgrading healthcare, education, employment, energy, sanitation and information technology infrastructure of both public and private organisations operating in the area. By bringing in Cartula International to bridge technology and healthcare, they have streamlined the General Health and Maternity educational process and provided a new platform for healthcare workers to coordinate the ongoing healthcare with their patients. After localising and testing the app, then entering a Memorandum of Understanding, KL University and Cartula have started a pilot the Cartula General Health App (focusing on Maternity) with 60 mothers.

With the early testing results showing as a success, there are plans for expansion in the near future. In collaboration with Cartula International and their subsidiary Smart Villages Initiative, KL University is aiming to rollout the Cartula General Health app to over 100 villages in the Gujarat region.