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Indian red cross ~ strictly from the park textbook

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Here is everything Park's textbook states on the Indian Red Cross, along with the surrounding context on the International Red Cross and the Role of Red Cross for completeness.

International Red Cross

(Background context from Park's)
The Red Cross is a non-political, non-official international humanitarian organization devoted to the service of mankind in peace and war. It was founded by Henry Dunant, a young Swiss businessman, who witnessed the Battle of Solferino (1859) in North Italy - one of the most savage battles of history - and was appalled by the neglect of thousands of wounded and dying soldiers. He recruited volunteers to help them and later, in his book "Un Souvenir de Solferino", urged that voluntary national societies be founded to render aid to the wounded without distinction of nationality, with a protective emblem and trained workers.
  • The First Geneva Convention (1864) followed, signing a treaty for relief of wounded and sick armies.
  • This gave birth to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) - an independent, neutral institution and the founder organization of the Red Cross.
  • In 1919, the League of the Red Cross Society was created, headquartered in Geneva, to coordinate the work of national societies (now numbering more than 90).

Role of Red Cross

Initially, the Red Cross role was confined to humanitarian service for victims of war. It was later extended to:
  • Service to armed forces
  • Service to war veterans
  • Disaster service
  • First aid and nursing
  • Health education
  • Maternity and child welfare services

Indian Red Cross

Establishment: The Red Cross Society of India was established by an Act of the Indian Legislature in 1920, with three objectives:
  1. Improvement of health
  2. Prevention of disease
  3. Mitigation of suffering
Peacetime activities:
  • Provides military hospitals with amenities such as newspapers, periodicals, musical instruments, and other comfort goods.
  • The Red Cross Home at Bangalore for disabled ex-servicemen is one of the pioneer institutions of its kind in Asia.
Disaster services:
  • Distribution of milk, medicines, Vitamin tablets, cod liver oil, and many other items to famine-stricken people and those hit by floods.
Maternity and Child Welfare:
  • The Society has done pioneering work in the development of maternity and child welfare services and has functioned as an auxiliary of the country's health services.
Junior Red Cross:
  • One of the most active sections of the Society.
  • Gives an opportunity to lakhs of boys and girls all over India to be associated with activities like:
    • Village uplift
    • First aid
    • Anti-epidemic work
    • Building up of an international fraternity of youth, thereby promoting international friendliness, understanding, and cooperation.
Source: Park's Textbook of Preventive and Social Medicine, Block 12, lines 7180-7205
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