A month long survey conducted by Kantar IMRB in association with Castrol has revealed that 50 percent of truckers face driving related health issues while 63 percent do not consider health as one of their top three priorities in life. The survey was covering over a 1000 truckers.

Reason impacting the health comprised of long working hours and long periods away from home and family. 50 percent of drivers have trips that last over 12 hours and 46 percent drive continuously for 6 hours without a break. Another alarming stat is that 62 percent of truck drivers have not undergone a health checkup in the past one year.

The ergonomic risk factors faced by Truck Drivers as a result of awkward and fixed postures, repetitive twisting of back and neck and working and sleeping in tight spaces result in chronic back, neck and joint pain.

This negligence of health amongst truck drivers is exacerbated by unfavourable environment and cultural factors in the road transport industry like poor driving infrastructure, badly maintained vehicles, lack of hygienic food and places to take rest, low wages, unplanned driving schedules and long absences from home. Consequentially, most truck drivers end up neglecting their own health while struggling to make a decent living.

Omer Dormen, Managing Director, Castrol India said, “The trucking industry is a significant contributor to our nation’s economic growth and prosperity and truck drivers are the vital force in moving the nation forward. Castrol has a long and close relationship with truckers in India since the inception of the trucking industry in the country. We have several programmes in place to improve their safety and well-being. Taking cognizance of the results that have come out from the recent survey, we are putting in further effort into finding solutions which could mitigate some of the challenges being faced by this section of society.”

Castrol also commissioned experts from The Yoga Institute in Mumbai to further investigate the issues and come up with some easy health tips which can be followed by the truckers even whilst they are on the go. A series of Yoga aasanas have especially been developed for truckers by the experts at The Yoga Institute – the Truck Aasanas. Over the next six months, Castrol will work towards sharing these yoga aasanas with truckers across the country, and encourage them to focus on their health and well-being.

Talking about the Yoga Aasanas incorporated, Dr. Hansaji Yogendra, Director of The Yoga Institute, Mumbai, said, “We are proud to associate with Castrol India in this unique initiative to drive awareness regarding the importance of Yoga for a healthy lifestyle amongst truck drivers.  We have designed special truck aasanas in consultation with truck drivers keeping their health and wellness in mind. It is essential for a truck driver to be physically fit to perform his duties efficiently and we believe the aasanas designed will significantly improve the overall lifestyle and performance of truck drivers.”