Finolex Industries and Mukul Madhav Foundation Strengthen Neonatal Care in Pune through Enhanced Human Milk Banks and NICU Support

Pune, Dec 23: Finolex Industries Ltd. (FIL), along with its CSR arm, the Mukul Madhav Foundation (MMF), today inaugurated an upgraded Human Milk Bank at Bharati Hospital and Research Centre (BHRC), Pune, reinforcing their long-standing commitment to maternal and child health. The upgrade, marked by the commissioning of a new pasteurisation machine and essential milk-banking equipment, significantly enhances access to safe, pasteurised donor breast milk for vulnerable newborns—particularly preterm and critically ill infants—during the most critical phase of early life.

The enhanced facility was inaugurated in the presence of key medical and institutional leaders, including Dr. Asmita Jagtap, Executive Director, Bharati Vidyapeeth; Dr. Sanjay Lalwani, Medical Director, Bharati Vidyapeeth Medical College & Hospital, Pune; Mrs. Jasmin Majethia, Patron of the Thalassemia Society of Pune Chapter (TSPC) and a leading advocate in the field of thalassemia for over four decades; and Dr. Jitendra Oswal, Child Specialist. The dignitaries highlighted the importance of sustained industry–healthcare partnerships in strengthening neonatal care infrastructure and improving outcomes for high-risk infants.

As part of Finolex Industries’ CSR initiative, MMF and Finolex Pipes have donated critical equipment to the Human Milk Bank at BHRC, strengthening its capacity to safely collect, process, store, and distribute donor human milk. This support will play a vital role in ensuring optimal nutrition and improving survival and recovery outcomes for preterm and critically ill newborns.

Expressing gratitude for the contribution, Dr. Asmita Jagtap and Dr. Sanjay Lalwani noted that the donation reflects the corporate partners’ deep commitment to maternal and child health and will have a lasting impact on neonatal care services at the hospital.

The Human Milk Bank at BHRC, operational since March 2022 and established with contributions from MMF and Finolex Pipes, has already benefited more than 2,200 vulnerable and sick infants, facilitating the distribution of over 1,500 litres of donor human milk collected from approximately 1,900 mothers. With the latest equipment upgrade, the facility will continue to serve as a critical lifeline for infants unable to receive their mother’s milk, supporting healthy growth, development, and survival.

Beyond Bharati Hospital, Finolex Industries and the Mukul Madhav Foundation currently support three key human milk banks in Pune—at Bharati Hospital, AFMC Command Hospital, and KEM Hospital. Together, these centres operate with a collective capacity of 9.5 litres, with Bharati Hospital managing 3.5 litres and both AFMC and KEM Hospitals operating at 3 litres each. The strengthened infrastructure at BHRC further enhances the network’s ability to meet the growing demand for specialised neonatal nutrition across the city.

In addition to milk banking initiatives, Finolex Industries and MMF have consistently invested in improving Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) environments. At Sassoon Hospital, MMF constructed the complete external infrastructure required to house a human milk bank contributed by other partners, helping make the facility fully functional and accessible to families in need.

Pasteurised donor human milk is a clinically proven intervention for low-birth-weight and premature infants. Compared with formula feeding, it significantly reduces infection risks, supports faster recovery, and promotes healthy growth and development. The milk undergoes a rigorous process of screening and pasteurisation by trained medical professionals and lactation specialists to ensure safety while preserving essential nutrients.

Speaking about the initiative, Ritu Chhabria, Managing Trustee, Mukul Madhav Foundation, said: “Every drop of donated milk represents a mother’s compassion reaching beyond her own child. By strengthening human milk banks across Pune, we are not only providing essential nutrition to premature and medically fragile infants but also offering families reassurance during an incredibly vulnerable time. With the continued support of Finolex Industries, we remain committed to ensuring that no newborn is deprived of safe, life-sustaining nourishment. Quality neonatal care should be a right, not a privilege—and together, we are building systems that uphold that belief.”

Through these sustained efforts, Finolex Industries and the Mukul Madhav Foundation continue to strengthen Pune’s healthcare ecosystem, supporting hospitals, caregivers, and families during some of the most critical moments of early life.

This is Finolex Pipes and Fittings:

We are India’s most trusted PVC pipes and fittings manufacturer. For 44 years, we have impacted the sanitation, plumbing and agricultural sectors with prudent investments across our value chain. Right from the sourcing of quality raw materials and resin production to manufacturing, storage, transport, sales, marketing, and even further downstream to include customer engagement.

To stay focused on making superior quality pipes and fittings, and nothing else but that, for forty-four years, is no mean feat. Aligning every decision, every action, every resource towards delivering quality pipes and fittings. To choose to do just this one thing and do it well. So that once our customers install our pipes, they completely forget about us. We take great pride in this dependable quality that has not only earned us ISO 9001:2015 certifications across plants, but also earned us the sincere affection of farmers, plumbers, homeowners, partners, associates and shareholders. They have all come to expect the world from us. Because that’s exactly what we expect from ourselves.

When we choose to diversify, it’s upstream with an open sea jetty to manage our raw materials, and downstream into last mile fulfilment. When we evolve, it has to be in our understanding of customer expectations and finding better machines and processes to meet those expectations. When we choose to expand, it is into newer markets, delivering our pipes and fittings to newer customers. And when we measure our growth, it is in reputation. The effect of which reflects in our bottom line, growing manifold in the last decade.

This quality focus is not just restricted to our products but defines every aspect of our functioning. Whether quality support for our dealers, vendors and suppliers. Quality opportunities to our employees. Superior quality of life, education and health of the people we serve through our various social responsibility initiatives.

Over the last forty-four years, we have steadily added depth to our company, instead of spreading ourselves wide and thin. Consistently delivering the exact same products that fulfil the exact same promise. Every time. That’s what makes us a strong brand, with a strong network, and even stronger goodwill. We are Finolex Industries Limited.

Partners in Compassion: 

Mukul Madhav Foundation (MMF), our CSR partner, is a registered charitable trust under the Bombay Charitable Act, 1950. It has dedicated itself to uplifting underprivileged and vulnerable communities with opportunities that pave their path to success. Empowering them with educational facilities, hospitals, healthcare, sanitation and environmental support, social welfare and so much more. Creating a foundation for individuals, their communities and their environment to thrive. MMF also supports existing infrastructure