New Delhi: As a part of Make in India initiative, the central government has started distributing indigenous ventilators to hospitals across the country to fight against the Covid pandemic. In the first slot, about 3000 domestic ventilators have been distributed to states.
Ventilators are life-saving medical equipment required for Covid patients, as some of them tend to develop acute respiratory disease syndrome (ARDS).
On May 1, the Union Health Ministry, in a press statement, had indicated the projected demand of 75,000 ventilators till June. Accordingly, orders were rushed including the requirements of the state governments.
"So far, atleast 3000 country-made ventilators have been distributed to states, which will be placed in various hospitals; few are under dispatch," a senior government official confirmed to ANI.
In the coming days, the domestic production of ventilators is going to speed up, added the official. Taking forward Make in India initiative, local manufacturers of ventilators were identified. They were guided about specifications, finalising the training and other protocols, creating new supply chains.
They were also helped with logistic issues with suppliers and state governments and the arrangement of consumables and etc were also decided. The major domestic players include Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) in collaboration with Skanray to whom orders for 30,000 ventilators were given.