BackAmazon to airlift and import 100 ICU ventilators to India amid Covid surge
Amazon expects the consignment to enter the country in the next two weeksAmazon has also carried out its own compatibility checks to immediately fund 100 units of Medtronic’s PB980 model and bring them into India for urgent use
PremiumBengaluru: In a bid to fight the covid-crisis in the nation, Amazon India on Tuesday said that it has procured 100 ICU ventilators through its global resources and looks to import these into India, in the next two weeks.
The e-commerce major said that it has worked with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), Government of India to ensure the ventilators are of acceptable technical specification.
In addition, Amazon has also carried out its own compatibility checks to immediately fund 100 units of Medtronic’s PB980 model and bring them into India for urgent use, the company said in a statement.
Amazon will work closely with Medtronic (MT) for these units to be airlifted into India and expects the consignment to enter the country in the next two weeks.
Amazon India is working closely with the MoHFW appointed agencies to finalise the hospitals with the most urgent need so that Amazon can partner with MT for end-to-end delivery, installation, maintenance and training of personnel who will use these machines.
“With the urgency of adding to the medical infrastructure and capacity for Indian hospitals fighting against covid-19’s severe second spike, we decided to urgently source, import and donate 100 ventilators to hospitals to be identified by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), Government of India. We highly appreciate the quick response from the MoHWF to help identify the most compatible models, expediting the shipment import into India and for coordination with agencies of MoHFW to allocate these where they are needed most," said Amit Agarwal, global senior vice president and country head, Amazon India.
“We are doing more and are committed to support our country in the fight against covid-19," added Agarwal.
Earlier this week, Amazon India also partnered with ACT Grants, Temasek Foundation, Pune Platform for Covid-19 Response (PPCR) along with other partners to urgently airlift over 8,000 oxygen concentrators and 500 bi-level positive airway pressure (BiPAP) machines from Singapore.
The company said that it will bear the cost of airlifting these oxygen concentrators and BiPAP machines, procured through multiple funders, including ACT Grants and PPCR, from Singapore to India, through Air India and other international carriers.
The first of these consignments was expected to land in Mumbai on 25 April 2021 and the majority of shipping was expected to be completed by 30 April.
On Tuesday morning, Mint reported that India saw close to 3.23 lakh fresh coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours. The country also saw 2,771 covid-related deaths, and 2.51 lakh recoveries in the last 24 hours, taking the total active cases to 28.8 lakhs, as per the latest health ministry update.
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