Apollo Tyres Foundation Healthcare Centres

An initiative of

Apollo Tyres Foundation

Implemented by

Telerad Foundation

Overview

The Apollo Tyres Foundation Healthcare Centres (ATHCs) are dedicated primary healthcare facilities established at key transport hubs to address the unmet healthcare needs of long-distance truck drivers, co-drivers, helpers, and associated communities.

This occupational group—forming a significant segment of India’s informal and highly mobile workforce—faces elevated health risks and systemic barriers to timely, affordable, continuous, and quality healthcare.

Long-distance truck drivers and their associates are routinely exposed to:

These factors significantly increase vulnerability to communicable diseases such as HIV, tuberculosis (TB), and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), as well as non-communicable diseases (NCDs) including diabetes, cardiovascular disease, kidney disorders, visual impairment, respiratory illnesses, oral health conditions, and musculoskeletal disorders.

Health risks are further compounded by:

High mobility and disrupted care continuity
Stigma associated with certain conditions
Limited awareness and preventive health practices
Restricted access to dependable healthcare facilities

As a result, many individuals experience delayed diagnosis, fragmented treatment, and avoidable out-of-pocket expenditure.

Service Model

The Apollo Tyres Foundation Healthcare Centres deliver integrated, accessible, and dignity-centred primary care through:

This on-ground, hub-based model ensures continuity-oriented healthcare without disrupting beneficiaries’ livelihoods or daily earnings.

Mission & Strategic Objectives of Apollo Tyres Foundation

The Apollo Tyres Foundation’s CSR programme is committed to creating sustained social impact by promoting community health, social empowerment, and sustainable development among vulnerable populations.

Key Objectives

Validated Impact

Since inception, the Apollo Tyres Foundation Healthcare Centres have demonstrated strong community acceptance and sustained utilisation among truck drivers and allied populations. The programme has achieved consistent uptake in:

Communicable disease screening and management (HIV, TB)
Vision care services
Chronic disease detection and management (especially diabetes)

The combination of static clinics, satellite services, structured outreach, and peer-supported mobilisation has strengthened access among a traditionally hard-to-reach, mobile population. The scale, adaptability, and trust built by the centres validate their effectiveness in enabling early diagnosis, improving treatment linkage, promoting preventive behaviours, and reducing health vulnerability among India’s transport workforce.

Background and Rationale behind Apollo Tyres Foundation Healthcare Centres

Long-distance truck drivers, co-drivers, helpers, and allied transport workers face significant occupational and lifestyle-related health risks. However, despite this elevated vulnerability, timely medical care is often deferred or entirely forgone.

Irregular and extended working hours, constant mobility across unfamiliar geographies, financial constraints, stigma surrounding certain health conditions, and fragmented access to dependable healthcare services along transport corridors create systemic barriers to care.

These vulnerabilities extend to their families and dependents as well. Prolonged absence of primary earners, financial insecurity, limited health literacy, and restricted access to affordable healthcare further delay timely health-seeking behaviour within their households.

Systemic barriers to healthcare access

A needs assessment conducted prior to programme design highlighted two critical realities:

High disease burden within the trucking community—including HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs), tuberculosis (TB), diabetes, and untreated vision impairment—characterised by delayed diagnosis and poor treatment continuity.

Inadequate access to structured primary healthcare services at transport hubs, with most truckers relying on informal providers or episodic care, leading to fragmented treatment, suboptimal outcomes, and avoidable out-of-pocket expenditure.

Against this backdrop, the Apollo Tyres Foundation conceptualised its Healthcare Programme in the early 2010s as a proactive, on-ground intervention to bridge critical healthcare access gaps for one of India’s most mobile and underserved occupational communities.

Anchored within major trans-shipment and transport hubs, the Apollo Tyres Foundation Healthcare Centres (ATHCs) have evolved into a robust and interconnected network of over 30 primary care dispensaries across key business hubs and state capitals in India, including major transport corridors.

The ATHC primary care model complements national public health priorities—particularly in HIV prevention, TB control, non-communicable disease (NCD) screening, and preventive health promotion. Through a combination of static clinics, satellite services, and outreach-led screening, the programme demonstrates a practical, scalable, and cost-effective approach to delivering outpatient, preventive, and follow-up care to truckers, cleaners, and their families.

Introduction to Apollo Tyres Foundation Healthcare Centres

Launched in the early 2010s, the Apollo Tyres Foundation Healthcare Centres have evolved into structured, accessible, and sustainable community health facilities serving truck drivers, cleaners, and allied transport workers across key transport hubs in India.

Today, the initiative operates a strong network of over 30 physical primary care centres located within major transport hubs in state capitals and other strategic cities.

The Telerad Foundation has been associated with the programme’s implementation in multiple phases. It previously operated the Apollo Tyres Healthcare Centres in Karimnagar and Hyderabad (Telangana) during 2021–2022. In 2025, Telerad Foundation was entrusted with the responsibility of managing the centres in Yeshwanthpur (Bengaluru) and Sankari (Salem district, Tamil Nadu).

The programme enables beneficiaries to access:

Over time, the initiative has matured into a comprehensive community healthcare delivery model focused on routine primary care, early detection of communicable and non-communicable diseases, preventive health education, and continuity of treatment.

The programme aligns with Apollo Tyres Foundation’s long-term CSR objectives and its commitment to Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3: Good Health and Well-being.

Partner with Telerad Foundation to strengthen operations and expand reach.

Objectives of the Apollo Tyres Foundation Healthcare Programme

Enable equitable access to quality primary healthcare services for long-distance truck drivers, co-drivers, helpers, and the wider transport ecosystem—including tea-stall owners, mechanic garage workers, auto parts shop workers, dhaba owners and staff, and other small utility shop operators at transport hubs.
Facilitate early diagnosis and timely management of acute, chronic, and occupational health conditions.
Strengthen continuity of care through assisted follow-ups, referral coordination, and treatment adherence support.
Improve preventive health awareness and promote positive health-seeking behaviour within mobile worker communities.
Build trust in formal healthcare systems among informal and highly mobile working populations.

How the Programme Works

The Apollo Tyres Foundation Healthcare Centres (ATHCs) operate through a hybrid, centre-based and outreach-driven care delivery model, combining static health facilities, mobile outreach within a 100 km radius of each centre, special health camps, and structured human facilitation to maximise access, utilisation, and continuity of care among trucking communities.

The Solution: A Hybrid Delivery Model

This integrated approach ensures that healthcare services reach beneficiaries where they live and work—without disrupting their livelihoods.

Proactive Outreach and Registration

The Peer – LED Ecosystem

Leveraging the transport economy to build trust.

Peer Educators are the first line of trust, guiding drivers to the network.

Trained Outreach Workers (ORWs) and health staff conduct regular field engagement at:

Transport hubs
Highways and trans-shipment points
Truck terminals and parking yards
Dhaba clusters and rest stops

These interactions focus on:

Introducing the programme and available services
Assessing basic health needs
Registering beneficiaries
Mobilising truckers and allied workers for clinic visits and special health camps
Providing targeted health education and risk-reduction counselling

Outreach efforts extend up to a 100 km radius from each Apollo Tyres Healthcare Centre, significantly expanding programme coverage.

Clinical Consultations and Follow-Up Support

Clinical consultations are delivered by qualified and experienced MBBS doctors, supported by trained paramedical staff, at both static centres and outreach camps.

On-site basic diagnostics include:

Blood pressure (BP) monitoring
Random blood sugar testing
Body Mass Index (BMI) assessment
Vision screening and refraction
Pulmonary Function Tests (PFT), where applicable

Patients receive:

Medical consultations and counselling
Free essential medicines through in-centre pharmacy support
Referral linkages to higher-level facilities where require

The model prioritises continuity of care, especially for chronic conditions such as diabetes, TB, and HIV.

Inbound Access Channels

In addition to proactive outreach, beneficiaries may:

Walk directly into Apollo Tyres Foundation Healthcare Centres
Approach outreach teams stationed at designated transport hubs

Services include consultations, screening, counselling, health information, and referral support—completely free of cost.

Service Portfolio

Through its static clinics and outreach services, the Apollo Tyres Foundation Healthcare Programme provides:

Comprehensive service portfolio

All consultations, medicines, and diagnostics are provided free of charge.

All consultations, medicines, diagnostic tests, and related services are provided free of charge to beneficiaries.

Outreach & Community Engagement Strategy

Interpersonal Communication (IPC) Outreach

Structured IPC sessions conducted by Outreach Workers
Targeted health awareness engagement at truck transit points and worksites
Behaviour change communication on priority health risks

Peer-Led Outreach Programme

A critical strength of the programme is its peer engagement model.
Peer Educators are individuals embedded within the trucking ecosystem at major transport hubs such as Yeshwanthpur and Sankari (operated by Telerad Foundation), as well as at other Apollo Tyres Foundation centres operated by partner NGOs.

These Peer Educators include:

Tea vendors
Dhaba owners and staff
Mechanics at truck repair garages
Pan shop owners
Public sanitation facility attendants
Small hotel and lodge operators

These are locations routinely visited by truck drivers during rest halts.

Through everyday interactions, Peer Educators play a vital role in:

Creating awareness about ATHC services
Guiding drivers to nearby Apollo Tyres Healthcare Centres across the national network
Encouraging timely health check-ups and screenings
Reinforcing follow-up adherence
Promoting preventive health practices

This embedded, trust-based model enhances programme credibility and service uptake.

Mid & Mass Media Engagement

To amplify awareness, the programme organises:

Health-themed awareness events supported by audio-visual and music-based media
Public announcements and community mobilisation campaigns at transport hubs
Trucker-focused health promotion activities at large gatherings

Wellness & Preventive Outreach

To amplify awareness, the programme organises:

Health-themed awareness events supported by audio-visual and music-based media
Public announcements and community mobilisation campaigns at transport hubs
Trucker-focused health promotion activities at large gatherings

Special Outreach Health Camps

Periodic special camps provide advanced screening services, including:

Diabetic retinopathy screening
Pulmonary Function Tests (PFT), conducted periodically
Basic blood investigations
Chest X-rays for TB and respiratory conditions (as part of designated camps)
Free distribution of spectacles through partner support (including RxDx Clinics for centres operated by Telerad Foundation)

Where advanced care is advised, beneficiaries are supported through structured referral pathways and follow-up coordination to ensure treatment continuity—without financial hardship or significant loss of workdays.

CSR Support

CSR support by Apollo Tyres Foundation enables programme operations including care coordination, teleconsultation delivery, digital platforms, preventive health communication, and monitoring and reporting mechanisms—ensuring efficient translation of CSR investments into measurable healthcare outcomes.

Operational excellence & partnership

The initiator

Vision & Strategy CSR Objectives Funding & Resource Allocation

The implementer

On-ground Execution Medical Expertise & Staffing Operational Management

Partnership history & mandate

Building on successful operations in Karimnagar and Hyderabad (2021–2022), Telerad Foundation is entrusted with managing the strategic centers in Yeshwanthpur and Sankari for the 2025 cycle.

CSR investments support:

Establishment and operationalisation of static health centres at key transport hubs
Deployment of qualified medical professionals and outreach teams
Procurement and free distribution of essential medicines
Organisation of integrated and specialised health camps
Behaviour Change Communication (BCC) activities
Community mobilisation and peer-led engagement
Monitoring, evaluation, and structured reporting mechanisms

This comprehensive support framework ensures that CSR contributions are effectively translated into measurable health outcomes for truck drivers, cleaners, allied transport workers, and their families—while strengthening access to dignified, preventive, and continuity-oriented healthcare.

Project Impact (Cumulative Impact as of December 2025)

Centres operated by Telerad Foundation in Hyderabad and Karimnagar (2021–22) and currently in Yeshwanthpur (Bengaluru) and Sankari (Salem District, Tamil Nadu).

Validated impact (as of Dec 2025)

61,940+

LIVES REACHED (Drivers, Helpers, Allied Workers)

14,043

Vision Tests

10,280

Diabetes Screenings

6,354

HIV Tests

1,057

TB Screenings

These outcomes reflect strong service uptake, community trust, and measurable progress toward early diagnosis and preventive healthcare among a highly mobile population.

Strategic Focus (FY 2026–27)

The 2026–27 phase will prioritise consolidation, quality enhancement, and expanded outreach.
Key focus areas include:

Community Engagement Calendar (FY 2026–27)

The Apollo Tyres Healthcare Centres operated by Telerad Foundation in Yeshwanthpur and Sankari function under the centralised programme framework of Apollo Tyres Foundation’s Healthcare Initiatives, alongside 30+ centres operated by other NGO partners nationwide.

Annual engagement calendar (FY 26–27)

Q1 (Apr–Jun)

World TB Day
World Health Day

Q2 (Jul–Sep)

World Lung Day (PFT Camps)
Vision Care Camps

Q3 (Oct–Dec)

World Sight Day
World AIDS Day
World Diabetes Day

Q4 (Jan–Mar)

World Oral Health Day
Integrated Health Camps

The programme includes continuous centre operations, periodic integrated health camps, and structured awareness activities addressing occupational health risks, communicable diseases (HIV, TB), non-communicable diseases, vision care, and preventive health.

Indicative Programme Schedule (FY 2026–27)

Sl. No.	Event / Activity
1	Year-round operation of Apollo Tyres Healthcare Centres at Yeshwanthpur (Bengaluru) and Sankari (Salem)
2	Integrated Health Camp (Sakushal Saarthi)
3	Diabetes Screening & Awareness Camp (World Diabetes Day)
4	Respiratory Health & TB Screening Camp (World TB Day)
5	Vision Care Camp (World Sight Day)
6	Satellite Camp with Peer-Led Outreach
7	Awareness Activities (Games, Shows, Community Events)
8	Respiratory Health Camp (World Lung Day)
9	Oral Health & Hygiene Camp (World Oral Health Day)
10	HIV/AIDS Awareness & Advocacy (World AIDS Day)
11	General Health Camp with Programme Visibility Activities
12	Advocacy Meetings (Government Departments & Stakeholders)
13	Peer Educator Felicitation & Community Review Meeting

This calendar ensures year-round engagement, preventive screening alignment with global health days, and sustained community mobilisation.

Partner With Us

The Apollo Tyres Foundation Healthcare Centres represent a scalable, cost-efficient, and community-embedded primary healthcare delivery model tailored for mobile and underserved transport worker communities.

Organisations interested in advancing sustainable healthcare access for informal workers may partner with Telerad Foundation and Apollo Tyres Foundation to:

Strengthen and scale health centre operations
Enhance clinical service quality
Expand geographical coverage
Support preventive health interventions along key transport corridors
Improve digital monitoring and measurable impact reporting

Through collaborative partnerships, the programme can further extend its reach and deepen health equity among India’s transport workforce.