The Government has started indigenous manufacturing of personal protection equipment (PPE) kits, ventilators, masks, oxygen cylinders besides ramping up hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) production from 12.23 crore to 30 crore per month.
Around 2.22 crore PPE kits and about 1.43 crore kits have been ordered by the government and will be available by the domestic manufacturers for frontline healthcare workers in the wake of Covid-19 pandemic.
PD Vaghela, chairman of the Empowered Group-3 and Department of Pharmaceuticals (DoP) secretary said, “There is a total demand of 75,000 ventilators. About 19,398 ventilators are available in India and orders have been placed for 60,884 more and of these 59,884 will be made by domestic manufacturers. Out of the total 2.49 crore N-95 masks ordered, 1.49 crore of these masks have been ordered from domestic manufacturers. The total projected demand of N-95 masks till June, 2020 has been estimated to be Rs. 2.72 crore.”
Till date, about 49.12 lakh N 95 masks have been received in the country and additional domestic supply in the next two months would be more than 1.40 crore.
Dr Vaghela further said, “HCQ production has also been increased from 12.23 crore to 30 crore per month. The country has also released about 16 crore tablets of HCQ to Central and State institutions as well as pharmacies against requirement of about 2.5 crore. Over 4 lakh oxygen cylinders are available for supply and orders for more than 1 lakh oxygen cylinders have been placed. Besides this, industrial oxygen is being converted into medical oxygen.”
