SRINAGAR: Marking the first day of the New Year with a public welfare initiative, Jammu and Kashmir Bank on Wednesday dedicated a ‘Heart Clinic on Wheels’ for the people of Jammu and Kashmir under its Corporate Social Responsibility programme.
The fully equipped mobile cardiac-care unit was formally handed over by the Bank’s Executive Director Sudhir Gupta to Ummeed Foundation’s Regional Head Dr Zubair Saleem at the Bank’s Corporate Headquarters. Chief General Manager Imtiyaz Ahmad, General Manager (CSR) Mohammad Muzaffar Wani, Deputy General Manager Hafeeza Rahim, senior cardiologist and project advisor Dr Khursheed Aslam Khan, and other senior officials were present on the occasion.
The project is being implemented by Ummeed Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation with a nationwide presence and more than a decade of experience in community healthcare and cardiac interventions. In addition to mobile cardiac services, the initiative includes training community health workers, conducting public awareness programmes on heart health, and creating a digital health registry to ensure follow-up and continuity of care.
Extending New Year greetings, Sudhir Gupta said the Bank remained committed to serving and empowering communities through people-centric interventions. He said beginning the year with a healthcare initiative reflected the Bank’s focus on making a tangible difference in people’s lives. Access to timely cardiac care, he noted, could mean the difference between life and loss, particularly in geographically challenging regions like Jammu and Kashmir. Through the Heart Clinic on Wheels, the Bank has facilitated critical cardiac services at the doorsteps of those who need them most.
Gupta added that the initiative went beyond treatment and placed equal emphasis on prevention and awareness. By combining screening, counselling, referrals, and community outreach, the project addresses a key healthcare gap while aligning with the Bank’s CSR vision of inclusive and sustainable development, he said.
Explaining the clinical capabilities of the mobile unit, Dr Khursheed Aslam Khan said the Heart Clinic on Wheels is equipped with advanced AI-enabled diagnostic systems that allow on-the-spot evaluation and real-time clinical decision-making. The unit carries life-saving emergency facilities, including a ventilator, defibrillator, and essential cardiac support systems, enabling immediate stabilisation of patients. Where required, he said, structured and rapid referrals to higher centres would be seamlessly coordinated to ensure continuity of advanced care.
The fully funded project aims to screen and diagnose more than 5,000 people in its first year, focusing primarily on elderly citizens, defence personnel and their families, and other high-risk groups. Over the coming years, the initiative is expected to benefit tens of thousands of people across the Union Territory.
Designed as a single-stop mobile cardiac emergency and diagnostic facility, the Heart Clinic on Wheels will operate across remote and border districts, conducting instant investigations such as ECGs, Holter monitoring, ambulatory blood pressure monitoring, and rapid blood tests including lipid profiling. These services are intended to enable early diagnosis and timely intervention.
The initiative also supports key Sustainable Development Goals, particularly those related to good health and well-being and the reduction of inequalities, and aligns with Jammu and Kashmir Bank’s broader CSR priorities.
