October 06th, 2020: Sri Lanka now has its own text-based helpline for those facing emotional and mental distress. Airtel Lanka together, with the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), launched the text-based platform 1926, a dedicated helpline to encourage an open culture around mental health.

The service is free for Airtel customers and is also accessible for users of other mobile networks. In times of need, a user only has to send a simple text message to 1926, and this will be responded immediately by a mental health specialist from NIMH.

The chat line will go live on 10th of October in commemoration of World Mental Health Day 2020, connecting users to professional counsellors who are available in English, Sinhala, and Tamil languages. The 1926 text-based helpline by Airtel hopes to encourage more young people to reach out to professionals, particularly when they are experiencing times of crisis and may require guidance in mitigating their mental health concerns in a safe and anonymous environment.

Connecting to the launch over Airtel Blue Jeans, CEO and Managing Director, Ashish Chandra said, “Digital technologies are transforming learning, socializing and communication among youth.Our brand is heavily engaged with young Sri Lankans and we are very much aware that they prefer to use digital platforms to engage and find solutions. At Airtel, we are always looking at ways to create meaningful connections for our customers by blending technology with human needs and this is one such initiative.”

Speaking at the event, Dr. Pushpa Ranasinghe, Senior Consultant Psychiatrist, NIMH said, “With the introduction of the 1926 voice-based hotline in 2018, there has been a gradual increase in the number of people, proactively seeking help to cope with anxiety, depression, stress, and other mental health concerns and directing them to the closest help center.” She further added, “Mobile phones and text messaging, in particular, have rapidly become the preferred communication tool among the youth, creating a culture connected to its phones. As healthcare professionals, our dependency on technology is now important than ever before. And as a result of its advancements, we can find improved ways of being accessible to those who need help. We are thankful to Airtel for helping us evolve 1926 from a voice to a text-based helpline.” The event concluded with a panel discussion on addressing mental health for all through greater investments and access. The session was moderated by mental health advocate Shanuki De Alwis featuring, Dr. Pushpa Ranasinghe – Senior Consultant Psychiatrist, National Institute of Mental Health, Nivendra Uduman – Psychologist, and Kanishka Ranaweera – Head of HR, Airtel Lanka. The NIMH established the ‘1926’ phone hotline in 2018 as part of a concerte effort to address legitimate concerns around the growing public health issues, to provide those in mental or emotional distress to seek assistance.

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1 – Dr. Pushpa Ranasinghe – Senior Consultant Psychiatrist, National Institute of Mental Health
Image 2 & 3 – Mr. Ashish Chandra CEO & Managing Director of Airtel Lanka joing the launch over Airtel Blue Jeans from India
Image 4 & 5 – A panel discussion on “Mental Health for all, greater investment, greater access for everyone, everywhere” featuring mental health advocate Shanuki De Alwis featuring, Dr. Pushpa Ranasinghe – Senior Consultant Psychiatrist, National Institute of Mental Health, Nivendra Uduman – Psychologist, and Kanishka Ranaweera – Head of HR, Airtel

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Sri Lanka’s most popular youth-telco brand, Airtel Lanka was once again ranked among the Top 40 Best Workplaces for a fourth time by the Great Place to Work Institute.

Commenting on this recognition, Airtel Lanka’s CEO & Managing Director, Ashish Chandra said, “Ultimately, it is people that give life to culture, and culture that gives rise to greatness. Our continuing success is therefore, a product of truly empowered teams, passionate about what they do and the connections they make through collaborative working.”

Particularly in the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, Airtel’s efforts underwent a radical acceleration as employees embraced the challenge of redesigning operations to suite the ‘new normal’ utilising technology and organisational agility to ensure business continuity. Not only did this timely transition play an integral role to create a seamless customer experience but also facilitated a gamut of workplace solutions.

This also included a shift in intra-office interactions towards online platforms, and tech-driven human resource solutions. From recruitment to digital on-boarding, job engagement, communications, capability development programmes, the telco honed in on its technical and global best practices to facilitate for a hassle-free and efficient working experience. Furthermore, Airtel’s consistent top positioning at Great Place to Work rankings is a reflection of the their continued commitment to creating an enabling office environment and enriching work experiences through inclusive and flexible policies designed to encourage and incentivise collaboration, creativity and innovation.

The telco embraces a culture that respects diversity and promotes equal opportunity – regardless of race, religion, gender and sexual orientation. Notably, Airtel was also ranked among the Top 10 Best Workplaces for Women in Sri Lanka at the inaugural edition of the Best Workplaces for Women Study 2019.

Airtel Lanka also works closely with the Employer Federation of Ceylon to provide training for persons with disabilities and based on the potential of the trainee has also extended their position at the telco through employment opportunities. Furthermore, all employee benefits are extended to third party employees, thereby promoting organisational citizenship behaviour and making Airtel a great workplace for all.

Great Place to Work Sri Lanka derives its rankings based on anonymous employee surveys, an evaluation of people practices and an in-depth culture audit prior to bestowing the credential of Great Place to Work on any company.

Headquartered in the USA, Great Place to Work is the global authority on high-trust, highperformance workplace cultures. Through proprietary assessment tools, advisory services, and certification programs, including Best Workplaces lists and workplace reviews, Great Place to Work provides the benchmarks, framework, and expertise needed to create, sustain, and recognise outstanding workplace cultures. Great Place to Work provides executive advisory and culture consulting services to businesses, non-profits, and government agencies in over 57 countries across five continents, including Sri Lanka.

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Airtel Sri Lanka, the most preferred telco by the youth, recently launched Sri Lanka’s first ever text-based mental health helpline in partnership with the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). The service which went live on World Mental Health Day 2020, is free for Airtel customers and is also accessible for users of other mobile networks.

Connecting to the launch over video, CEO and Managing Director, Ashish Chandra said,“Digital technologies are transforming learning, socializing and communication among youth. Our brand is heavily engaged with young Sri Lankans and we are very much aware that they prefer to use digital platforms to engage and find solutions. At Airtel, we are always looking at ways to create meaningful connections for our customers by blending technology with human needs and this is one such initiative.”

The event took place alongside a panel discussion addressing this year’s theme for World Mental Health Day; “Mental health for all through greater investments and access”. The session was moderated by mental health advocate Shanuki De Alwis featuring, Dr. Pushpa Ranasinghe – Senior Consultant Psychiatrist, National Institute of Mental Health, Nivendra Uduman – Psychologist, and Kanishka Ranaweera – Head of HR, Airtel Lanka.

Addressing the gathering, Airtel’s Head of HR, Kanishka Ranaweera said, “Outside our business operations, a majority of our work focuses on empowering the next generation of Sri Lankan’s. From sports, to vocational training to even cybersecurity training, Airtel has been in the forefront of creating a lasting impact in education, careers and the lives of young people.”

According to the latest survey conducted by the World Health Organization, the ongoing pandemic has disrupted or halted critical mental health services in 93% of countries worldwide. As Sri Lankan’s continue to engage in social distancing, the introduction of the chat-line will be an important means for the youth of the country to continue to receive professional assistance in mitigating their mental health concerns in a safe and anonymous environment.

The launch of the 1926 text based chat-line is the latest activity in relation to youth empowerment conducted by the telco. Recently, the telco commemorated World Youth Skills Day 2020 together with the USAID project, YouLead by engaging in a series of vocational guidance webinars focusing on “skills in the workplace”. Another notable activity by Airtel together with World Vision was a series of online safety awareness drives for school teachers and principals which reached over 6,000 educators across the country. Similarly, the telco has also engaged in multiple youth and sports skills Press Release development programmes including ‘Airtel Sri Lanka’s Fastest’ which concluded in 2019 and ‘Airtel Rising Stars’ the telco’s novelty youth sports programmes launched in association with Manchester United.

Image 1 – Mr. Ashish Chandra CEO & Managing Director of Airtel Lanka joining the launch over Airtel Blue Jeans from India
Image 2 – CEO & MD of Airtel Lanka Mr. Ashish Chandra, Chief Marketing Officer Airtel Lanka Mr. Chandrashekar Singh Chauhan , Senior Consultant Psychiatrist NIMH Dr. Pushpa Ranasinghe, Director NIMH Dr. Dhammika Wijesinghe, Deputy Director General – Non
Image 3– The panellists Shanuki De Alwis – Mental Health Advocate, Dr. Pushpa Ranasinghe – Senior Consultant Psychiatrist, National Institute of Mental Health, Nivendra Uduman – Psychologist, and Kanishka Ranaweera – Head of HR, Airtel Lanka.

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• Deploys 900 Mhz spectrum to cater to growing demand
• Initial tests confirm unmatched indoor experiences

Sri Lanka’s most preferred telco brand among youth, Airtel Lanka announced the successful completion of a superior 900MHz spectrum rollout aimed at drastically enhancing user experience across the Northern Province.

The deployment of the new spectrum will result in enhanced network experience and more importantly results in wider coverage catering to the geographically expanding population in the province. The network enhancement is set to pave the way for the anticipated launch of Airtel 4G services in that area.

“The deployment of the new spectrum is critical to our growth strategy. The spectrum allows better signal penetration enabling an enhanced indoor experience and frees up capacity on our higher frequency bands thereby enabling us to cater to the growing demand across a larger population spread across the region.” said Airtel Lanka Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director, Ashish Chandra said.

These developments are part of a bold strategy from Airtel Lanka that will see the company leapfrog ahead in order to drastically raise the bar on user experience.

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