Daaima On Wheels

Problem statement:

“Children under 2 years, of mothers in the informal sector of work in lower socioeconomic groups often suffer from malnourishment due to lack of safe breastfeeding facilities, which leads to numerous ailments and even death.”

•About 3 of 5 neonates are threatened by Malnourishment due to lack of breast milk.

•96% of Indian female workforce (Informal sector) is not lawfully protected by the Maternity Benefits Act (for formal sector)

•3 in 4 mothers have faced stigma and discrimination for breastfeeding in public.

•Irregular working hours to make minimal wages with near zero maternity protection in informal sector causes lactating people to re-join early on (~ 3 months) postpartum, and reduce exclusive breastfeeding greatly

The Current Solutions:

•Fewer feeds + top up feeds for early weaning

•(Banned, but still marketed) formula milk

•Expressed milk (Hand/ pump)

Problems with breast pump usage:

•Lack of adequate knowledge about user guidelines

•Not readily accessible and affordable : average cost more than daily wages of a female worker

•Risk of contamination due to lack of sanitation/ privacy at most informal workplaces

•Issues of storage and timely transportation to caregivers.

Limitations:

•Formula milk: lacks nutrition, banned (IMS Act, 2003), economically unviable.

•Inability to express→ engorgement→ breast conditions in mother→→ inability to produce as much milk→ early weaning + top up foods→ inadequate nutrition.

•Expressed milk still cannot compete with the act of breastfeeding.

Our Solution:

Daaima (Wet Nurse in Hindi- India's official language) A Breastfeeding/Expressing and Transport Mobile Unit!

•A safe, private space for mothers in the informal sector, with limited access to their child during hours of work, to express breast milk.

•Sterile storage and regular, timely transport of expressed breast milk from working mothers to the caregivers, to be given to the child.

•Promotion of maternal and child health through a simple, economically viable process in accordance with the SDGs 2, 3 and 10, thus contributing towards reduction in MMR/ IMR/ UFMR.

•Recognizing the associated stigma and inherent shame in mothers with breastfeeding in public places, to work around the current lacunae of Maternity Benefit laws in the country, and make a provisions to promote exclusive breastfeeding till 6 months of age in a neonate, in accordance with the WHO standards.

Facilities & Equipment available inside the van:

•FDA recommended soap and bottles of boiled water from PHCs along with brush to wash pumps after use, with wiping cloths stored in sterile containers.

•Sterile towels for mother to prevent contamination.

•Sterile breast pumps with standard varying gauges to fit maximum breast sizes.

•Female clinical/paraclinical healthcare worker to assist in procedure, for counselling on best method to express milk (hand/ pump) and to prevent contamination to pumps/ associated apparatus.

•Thermal containers/ Ice Boxes to store breast milk.

•GPS navigation system with App integration!

Specifications of Mobile Unit:

•Electric >CNG > Petrol in the order of priority, based on availability of fuel and charging facilities in the area.

•2-3 Mothers can feed/ express at a time.

•Number of Vans and their distribution across the localities would be determined based on population density and birth rate of that district.

•To be parked in the Primary Health Centre/ Sub-center in which it is registered.

Specifications of Breast Pumps:

•Manual Pumps would be used since they are cheaper, easily available and less bulky

•Material: Polypropylene: pump body, hygiene cover for funnel, handle, diaphragm stem, Natural bottle.

•Silicone: cushion, diaphragm, valve, newborn flow teat

•Thermoplastic Elastomer (TPE): sealing disc

We present to you, the Dai-ma APP:

•GPS Tracking and alarms: Keep a track of feeding time and your closest Mobile Unit!

•ChatBOT ‘Dai-ma’:  A 24/7 chatbot which will answer your queries or connect you to a member of our team who would help you out.

•SOS Alert: Alert loved ones, and your doctor, in case of an emergency with just a touch or a shake!

STEP 1 (REGISTRATION):

STEP 2 (SERVICE):

Target population- pregnant people working in the informal sector. Examples include:

• Domestic work
• Home-based work
• Waste picking
• Construction
• Street vending
• Local transport
• Shops
• Community services like street cleaning and garbage collecting

The informal sector employs: 

• Approximately half of the workforce in agricultural activities
• 96% of rural jobs
• 92.4% of informal workers (with no written contract, paid leave, and other benefits)
• Construction laborers, migrant workforce, street vendors, and domestic workers

•About 3 of 5 neonates are threatened by Malnourishment due to lack of breast milk.

•96% of Indian female workforce (Informal sector) is not lawfully protected by the Maternity Benefits Act (for formal sector)

•3 in 4 mothers have faced stigma and discrimination for breastfeeding in public.

•Irregular working hours to make minimal wages with near zero maternity protection in informal sector causes lactating people to re-join early on (~ 3 months) postpartum, and reduce exclusive breastfeeding greatly

Plans for sustainability:

•Improving outreach to vulnerable populations

[CSWs with children, gender non-binary parents with biological/ adoptive children, neonates in orphanages (via milk donation)]

•Overcoming topographical barriers e.g. delays during certain seasons in certain areas.

•Outreach to disaster-zones not just for maternal and child care but also for relief provisions temporarily.

•Increase Efficiency, in both cost and time.

Our team consists of two people, a medical intern who has chaired the SRHR committee of India's largest medical students' organization, and a bioengineer, both Indians and living close to the lower socioeconomic strata, seeing, hearing and comprehending the distress they feel when their children suffer from malnourishment due to lack of safe breastfeeding facilities, which lead to numerous ailments and even death. In India 3 in 5 neonates are threatened by malnourishment, 96% of the female workforce is unprotected by the maternity benefits law and 3 in 4 mothers have faced discrimination for breastfeeding in public. Our co-founder, Ms. Shivani Nirgudkar interns in hospitals where majority of the footfall is of people from that strata of society and she is able to understand the daily dilemmas they face. The team bioengineer, Mr. Sabyasachi Banerjee, used his expertise in the engineering domain to build up a viable solution with Ms. Nirgudkar to combat this issue using engineering and software. Since the voice of the customer is incredibly important, we have spoken to our target audience at every checkpoint in our plans, to ensure the maximum comfort and support for them.

Daimaa-on-wheels is not just a mobile breastfeeding unit, it is a clarion call for change for not just the market, but India as well. To change people's perception and abolish the taboo of breastfeeding being something to be hidden, something shameful to be done in public. 

It is an initiative to educate the masses about the benefits of breastfeeding children and donation of excess breastmilk, to provide for babies not having natural access to the same. We offer an app which allows the user to track where the daimaa on wheels is and also spread awareness about how breastfeeding works and how absolutely beneficial it is for both the mother and the child. Our business model is B2G and B2C.

Daimaa on wheels, is still in an ideation phase and needs capital and investors to be realised. In the next five years, we intend to be fully functional in the city of Mumbai and start expanding to other metropolitan cities as well. We wish to cater to both lower and higher socio-economic stratas, where we'd not charge for women belonging to the lower strata, provided they have proof of the same using the myAadhar system set up by the government of India, and charge a nominal fee to the women working in the higher socio-economic strata, to be able to sustainably fund the initiative.

Our plans are compliant with 2, 3, 5, 8, 10 and 17 number SDGs.

Plans for sustainability:

•Improving outreach to vulnerable populations

[CSWs with children, gender non-binary parents with biological/ adoptive children, neonates in orphanages (via milk donation)]

•Overcoming topographical barriers e.g. delays during certain seasons in certain areas.

•Outreach to disaster-zones not just for maternal and child care but also for relief provisions temporarily.

•Increase Efficiency, in both cost and time.

Breastfeeding in public is taboo in India and many other countries of the global South, especially South Asia. Many women from lower socio-economic strata have to go back to work immediately after delivery of the baby and do not often know how to ensure proper postpartum care. This leads to two things: number one, the child being malnourished and vulnerable to diseases as they do not get enough breast milk. Number two, breast milk which can either be fed to the child or donated to a milk bank, gets wasted. Daimaa on wheels is a concept which is a need of the hour as it realizes all these problems and takes a firm stance in solving them, one mother at a time. Daimaa is a Hindi word which refers to a midwife, a person who cares for new mothers and their babies. With our women centric approach, and our desire to make this world a better place, all the while connecting personally with our customers is exactly what will help bring about the change we sorely require.

Currently 2 people work on this solution, on a part-time basis, as both are students.

We have been working for 3 months on this project, a lot of which has been spent ensuring that we have the voice of the customer by conducting regular baseline assessments and focused discussion groups at all times and tailor the solution in such a way that it tackles nearly all the issues being faced in pre and postpartum care.

We the solution makers come from different communities in India, one from the Maharashtrian community from Western India and the other from the Bengali community from East India. As we expand we intend to keep in mind the diverse takes we can get on this global problem by keeping regional and gender representation on the forefront for our criteria for adding to our team. To ensure that our target population-who are regionally radically diverse, yet united by the common problem of ineffective breastfeeding- receives reproductive equity and justice, we intend to customize our solutions based on the local topography and social fabric. 

•Historical Data: 2017-2022

•Forecast Period: 2023-2029

•Market Size (2023): US$ 2.77 Bn

•Market Size (2029): US$ 5.57 Bn

Segments Covered: By Product:

1.Closed System

2.Open System

By Technology:

1. Manual    2. Battery Powered

By Application: 1.     Personal Use 2.     Hospital Grade