KARACHI: Shell Pakistan Limited (SPL) in partnership with Layton Rahmatulla Benevolent Trust (LRBT) has been working for over fifteen years to ensure healthy eyesight of drivers, customers and community members by offering eye testing for truck drivers as part of its road safety outreach programme, says a Press release.
These one-day eye camps were arranged along with iftar for the haulier’s oil tanker drivers. This year, nearly 400 drivers along with the nearby communities were provided free medical treatment for eye aliments at the eye camp in the cities including Karachi, Muzaffargarh, Sheikhupura (Machike) and Rawalpindi (Chaklala).
“Drivers play an important role in safely transporting fuel across Pakistan and are pivotal to safety on the roads and our business. They are important to us and their eye health is essential for them to do their jobs well and safely. In the last five years, Shell, in partnership with LRBT, has offered free eye checks to 6,241 people. This year, Shell set up free eye testing camps that were also open to community located near the terminals at few of our locations,” said Habib Haider, Head of External Relations in SPL.
Over the years, in these eye-testing camps established at SPL retail stations and truck sites, the drivers, their families and customers from urban centres had their eyes checked. A team of ophthalmologists and support staff from LRBT conducted eye tests and dispensed medicine for eye aliments. If further treatment is required, patients were referred to the closest LRBT hospital where they receive free additional treatment.
SPL are the pioneers in the setting up of authorized driver rest facilities throughout main trucking routes and have the largest network of such facilities across the country.
SPL was the first company to introduce the concept of trackers on tank lorries to ensure standards like speed limit, adequate rest, harsh braking are being complied with during the journey as part of their road safety outreach programme. Tracking systems have now been made mandatory by OGRA on all vehicles involved in primary freight.