Coronavirus pandemic | 1,500 ventilators produced by Maruti Suzuki ready for dispatch
Maruti Suzuki Chairman RC Bhargava informed that Gujarat and Haryana state governments and Medanta Hospital in Gurugram have already requested supply of ventilators
April 28, 2020 / 04:34 PM IST
Shortly after Mahindra and Mahindra used their facilities to produce low-cost ventilators to help India’s in its fight against the coronavirus outbreak, car maker Maruti Suzuki also came forward to help increase the number of the life-saving medical equipment available in India.
It tied up with AgVa Healthcare — which provided the technology — to produce more than 1,500 ventilators in less than three weeks. However, Car and Bike report stated that they are still waiting for a nod from the government to dispatch them.
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A Hindustan Times report stated that the first ventilator was produced by Maruti within 10 days, and now they are producing 300 ventilators daily.
Maruti Suzuki Chairman RC Bhargava informed that Gujarat and Haryana state governments have already requested supplies of these ventilators. Meanwhile, Medanta Hospital in Gurugram has already been testing a Maruti ventilator for the past two weeks and after being satisfied with its performance, they have sought for more.
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He added that HLL Lifecare has even inspected their equipment, but is yet to send a feedback report, before which the ventilators cannot be dispatched.
Commenting on why the government sought help from the automobile firms to increase the number of ventilators available in India (important to support COVID-19 patients suffering from respiratory issues), Bhargava said: “The Centre requested us to help manufacture ventilators because there was a critical shortage…. Which other industry has the capability of scaling up an operation like this which means developing the components, importing components, ensuring quality on a large scale, to maintain quality? The auto industry has a clear advantage in this.”
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