Ranbaxy Laboratories and its parent Daiichi Sankyo on Friday announced a joint community initiative in India with the flag-off of two mobile rural healthcare service vans for Dewas in Madhya Pradesh.

The initiative will be implemented through the Ranbaxy Community Health Care Society, a non profit organisation established by Ranbaxy, Daiichi and Ranbaxy said in a joint statement.

"The two new vans will augment our efforts in the district and focus on bringing down infant mortality rates and improving maternal healthcare,"

said Ranbaxy chief executive officer and managing director Arun Sawhney.

"Dewas has been an important manufacturing centre for Ranbaxy for almost three decades. We remain strongly committed to the region and would like to give back to the society we operate in," he added.

Ranbaxy became a part of the Daiichi Sankyo Group in 2008 after Japan's third largest drug maker bought a majority stake for Rs 22,000 crore (Rs 220 billion).

"India is an important zone for Daiichi Sankyo and we are very pleased to dedicate our first joint CSR initiative in the country," Ranbaxy Chairman and Daiichi Sankyo Board Member Tsutomu Une said.