Shriya Saran at 'Adopt a School' Program

Hyderabad, December 20, 2011: Colgate-Palmolive (India) Limited ("Colgate"), the market leader in oral care and 'the Indian Dental Association (IDA), rolled out its annual national awareness program - 'Oral Health Month' (OHM), earlier this week. Spread over two months - December 2011 and January 2012, during OHM, Colgate and IDA will focus on creating awareness to fight cavities and instill the importance of good oral hygiene through dental check- ups, across the country. This year, a unique 'Adopt a School' initiative has been kicked off, where school children as 'Little Dentists' will own and spread the message of good oral care habits in community schools. Shriya Saran - a leadinq actress in the South Indian film industry, who visited one such program, at Government High school, Musherabad, to extend her support, urged mothers to come forward and play the all important role in the dental care of their
children.

During the 'Adopt a School' program, 15 students from Gowtham Model School, played 'Little Dentists' and visited over 600 children of Primary Schooi (1 st-4thstandard) from Government High School. The 'Little Dentists' spoke to these younger children about their own oral care regime and the importance of good oral habits to prevent cavities. They introduced the five important oral care tips recommended by Colgate. The 'Little Dentists' encouraged the students of Government High School to avail of the free cavity check-ups organized at their premise as part of Colgate's national awareness program - 'Oral Health Month'. Furthermore, all participating school children pledged to invite their friends and family members to sign up for a free cavity check-up and practice good oral hygiene.

Shriya Saran graced the occasion and urged mothers to take charge of their children's dental hygiene regime. She guided the children to the Colgate mobile dental van and along with the 'Little Dentists', facilitated the free cavity checkups. Speaking on the occasion, Shriya Saran said, "Cavities are a serious and growing concern for today's generation, and they can be avoided to a large extent, if we practice good oral hygiene. That is why I am here today, to support this Colgate 'Adopt a School' program. It is important that children understand the basics of good oral care. I salute the efforts of Colgate and IDA in their commitment to create oral care awareness through initiatives like 'Oral Health Month', which helps spread this message far and wide. I am happy to partner with this large scale national awareness program for the second consecutive year to spread the message of oral hygiene. It is very important to create awareness of this. great initiative so more and more people know about the free dental check-ups and visit the dentist to avail of this opportunity. "

The 'Adopt a School' program is a new initiative in Colgate's 2011 'Oral Health Month' Program, to increase awareness about the importance of maintaining good oral habits. As part of this ongoing school program, 'Little Dentists' will reach out to children in community primary schools, spreading the message of good oral care hygiene and pledge for 'Zero Cavities'. Announcing the eighth edition of 'Oral Health Month', Rekha Rao, Vice President Marketing, Colgate India said, "At, Colgate, it is our continuous effort to spread awareness around good oral care. Focused initiatives like the 'Adopt a School' during our national oral care awareness
program - 'Oral Health Month', are an important way to reach children and mothers. With one in every two children in India, suffering from cavities, we are committed to making oral care available to all across the country with a special focus on 'Zero Cavities'. This year, in association with IDA we will create oral care awareness in approximately 10,000 schools reaching out to 20 lakh school children across India."

Dr. Ashok Dhoble, Hon. Secretary General, Indian Dental Association said, "We are delighted to partner with Colgate in this national awareness program that has grown phenomenally in the past seven years. In terms of its scale and outreach, 'Oral Health Month' is
the biggest oral hygiene awareness program held every year in India. This year we are looking at over 25,000 dentists to support and spread basic oral health education and awareness among the masses, especially in the interior rural areas. OHM, this year, aims at 'Zero Cavities.