New Delhi: India received 100 ventilators from the US on Wednesday as part of President Donald Trump’s assistance in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.
It’s the second lot of US-manufactured ventilators handed over to New Delhi. The first shipment of 100, which arrived in India on June 14, are being used to support COVID-19 patients at the eight regional All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) centres.
According to a US embassy statement these state-of-the-art ventilators are compact, easy to deploy and provide India with flexibility in treating patients affected by the virus.
US Agency for International Development (USAID), in coordination with the Indian government and the Indian Red Cross Society, donated the second shipment of 100 new, state-of-the-art ventilators to assist India in its fight against COVID-19, the statement said.
“We are very pleased to hand over the final tranche of 100 ventilators to India, fulfilling President Trump’s commitment to provide these critically needed supplies to support India’s pandemic response,” US Ambassador Kenneth Juster said.
In addition to the ventilators, US Agency for International Development (USAID) is funding a package of support that includes warranties and additional supplies required to operate these machines, such as tubes, filters and other necessary components, the statement said.
USAID is also working in close coordination with the Indian government to enhance the capacity of the health facilities using these ventilators by facilitating setup, orientations and clinical training for health care providers responsible for operating the machines, it said.
