- The government of India (GOI) has banned the export of ventilators
- Maruti Suzuki will be manufacturing ventilators in collaboration with AgVa Healthcare
- The former will be using its supply chain to source components required to make ventilators
- Ventilators are termed as critical medical equipment to fight Coronavirus outbreak
Maruti Suzuki has collaborated with AgVa Healthcare to manufacture ventilators for use in hospitals. The latter, as per the collaboration, is using its technology, while the former is responsible for sourcing components required for manufacturing ventilators.
According to a report published by CNBC, India needs approximately 2.1 ventilators per 10,000 patients to battle the Coronavirus crisis. The report also mentions that while there are around 1,00,000 ventilators available in India, many of these are being used for critical patients already.
Startups and big companies working on manufacturing ventilators
Many startups including the likes of Noida-based AgVa and Bengaluru-based Skanray Technologies have been asked by the state as well as the central government to ramp up production of ventilators. Another media report highlighted that AgVa healthcare will be manufacturing 10,000 ventilators per month.
Duwakar Vaish, co-founder, AgVa Healthcare told the Economic Times digital that the startup is gearing to manufacture 20,000 ventilators in the next 30 days. The GOI has reached out to the company to manufacture 5,000 ventilators by 15 April 2020.
Components for the final product are imported
Another report by CNBC pointed out that while this may be an opportunity for many companies, the task at hand is difficult as the components for the final product (ventilators) are imported. At a meeting held last Tuesday, the GOI had asked device makers to collate information about the availability of ventilators in the country by first April 2020.
The GOI had also informed the manufacturers that the Andhra Pradesh Medtech Zone (AMTZ) is gearing up to provide financial assistance to the tune of Rs 40 crore for large-scale manufacturing of ventilators.
Other companies including the likes of Mahindra Group and SMT are also manufacturing ventialtors in their facilities. Stent-manufacturer SMT is believed to be looking at the possibility to 3D manufacture ventilators.
