Background

As per the Global Fund 2020-22 Report, Malaria is one of the major public health problems in India. With children 5 times more vulnerable to this disease, their cases were witnessing a sudden outbreak — especially in the Bareilly district of India, Uttar Pradesh. Hence, Bareilly became the number one priority for Mortein, a trusted name in household insecticide, to act and achieve India's goal of being Malaria-free by 2030.

Instead of using modern science to combat this threat, mothers continued applying two Black Dots (Kaala Teeka) on children every day. There's a strong belief amongst Indian mothers that applying 2 Teeka (black dots) will protect their children from all harm and ward-off the evil eye.

Idea

We reformulated the traditional KaalaTeeka and infused it with natural oil of Lemon Eucalyptus, a natural mosquito repellent. Two dots of which would help provide protection against the evil-eye, and also create a mosquito repelling perimeter around the entire child. It was developed to look and feel the same as the traditional Teeka. Its pack was designed using Aipan folk art, as it itself is considered to ward off the evil-eye.

Strategy

The data from the Global Fund Report and WHO showed us the sad reality of malaria in India. The studies of the National Institute of Health helped us gather information about the state of malaria cases in various parts of India. Through which we were able to shortlist Bareilly district that accounted for almost 50% of cases in the biggest state of the country. We focused on children, as they were 5 times more vulnerable to malaria. The Indian Census Data helped us ascertain the number of children, mothers and households in Bareilly we wanted to approach.

The mothers of these children became our primary audience. We engaged with them at multiple strategic touchpoints like their houses, local markets, village squares, etc.

The actionable call was to use Suraksha Ka Teeka, apply it just like the traditional Kaala Teeka, one on the forehead, one on the ankle.

Execution

After months of research and analysing the making of the traditional Kaala Teeka, the Mortein Advanced Research Lab devised the right formulation to infuse into the traditional Teeka to make the Suraksha Ka Teeka. Lemon Eucalyptus oil, a natural mosquito-repellent, was used to create it.

An on-ground awareness program was launched which was spearheaded by the brand's volunteers and local health workers. We deployed a door-to-door distribution campaign to reach the product directly into the hands of mothers. Also, an educational program was deployed for maximum reach. The traditional baby Maalish (massage) Ladies were used to reach out to mothers at their homes.

The product was manufactured in December 2022, following which the initiative was launched in the Bareilly district of India. The brand would soon deploy this innovative solution across multiple districts and areas in India which have high occurrences of Malaria cases.