UK to send 1,000 more ventilators to Indian hospitals to fight Covid surge
The UK government will send 1,000 ventilators to India to help the country fight its current Covid-19 surge, which has seen case numbers reach more than 400,000 a day.
England chief medical officer Chris Whitty and chief scientific advisor Sir Patrick Vallance have also given “help and advice” in recent days to their Indian counterparts, Downing Street said today.
It comes after the UK sent 200 ventilators, 495 oxygen concentrators and 3 oxygen generation units to India last week.
India’s health ministry said today that 3,689 had died of Covid-19 in the past 24 hours, however the actual figures are expected to be much higher.
Hospitals across the country are reporting shortages in oxygen and other vital medical equipment used to treat coronavirus.
“The terrible images we have seen in India in recent weeks are all the more powerful because of the close and enduring connection between the people of the UK and India,” Boris Johnson said.
“I am deeply moved by the surge of support the British people have provided to the people of India and am pleased the UK Government has been able to play our part in providing life-saving assistance.
“The UK will always be there for India in its time of need.”
Johnson will speak with Indian PM Narendra Modi “to deepen cooperation between the UK and India” on Tuesday, including on Covid-19.
Modi has been criticised at home and abroad for not implementing a national lockdown during the current coronavirus surge, which is breaking global records for daily cases and deaths.
He has instead continued to hold mass gatherings in the lead-up to state elections.