Covid-19: 6,50,000 kits dispatched from China for India, to arrive later today

The consignment includes part of the large orders placed by India for medical supplies and equipment with Chinese firms, the people familiar with developments said.

Updated on: Apr 16, 2020, 13:11:33 IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | By Rezaul H Laskar

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A consignment of 5,50,000 antibody testing kits and 100,000 RNA extraction kits was dispatched by Chinese firms to India on Thursday morning for use in the country’s efforts to prevent and control the spread of Covid-19, people familiar with developments said.

Testing kits for the novel coronavirus are stacked at the Velocity Urgent Care April 15, 2020 in Woodbridge, Virginia. (AFP Photo)

The consignment includes part of the large orders placed by India for medical supplies and equipment with Chinese firms, the people said.

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The external affairs ministry has been playing a key role in coordinating the government’s efforts to acquire vital medical supplies from other countries, the people cited above said on condition of anonymity.

ALSO WATCH | ‘1st consignment of COVID-19 kits from China to arrive in India on Apr 15’: ICMR

“As part of these efforts, the first lot of 3,00,000 rapid antibody testing kits from Guangzhou Wondfo and another 2,50,000 from Zhuhai Livzon and 1,00,000 RNA extraction kits from MGI Shenzhen were custom cleared late on Wednesday night,” said one of the people cited above.

“The consignment left this (Thursday) morning for India,” the person said. “The total of 6,50,000 kits is on the way and should reach today (Thursday).”

Also read: Two firms begin production of antibody rapid test kits in India

The Indian embassy in Beijing and the consulate in Guangzhou played a key role in the despatch of the medical equipment.

On Tuesday, India’s ambassador to China, Vikram Misri, had told reporters that facilitating India’s imports of Covid-19-related critical medical equipment and keeping the drug production supply chain open would be the “best” signal from China for bilateral ties.

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Chinese companies have been contracted for nearly 15 million personal protective equipment (PPE) kits comprising gowns, gloves, masks and goggles, and 1.5 million rapid testing kits for Covid-19 by the Indian government and private companies, he said.

India has asked China to speed up the export of a large quantity of quality-checked medical equipment such as protective clothing, ventilators and testing kits from Chinese companies. India is also in communication with China on keeping the supply line of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) open for manufacturing generic drugs, Misri added.

In a separate development, India supplied half million hydroxychloroquine tablets and 12 tonnes of life-saving medicines to Mauritius late on Wednesday.

Also read: Slow Covid-19 testing pipeline as big a worry as kit delay

This was the first consignment of Covid-19-related medical supplies provided by India to Mauritius. The country’s vice prime minister, Leela Devi Dookun-Luchoomun, received the consignment that was carried in a special Air India cargo flight.

India has so far cleared supplies of hydroxychloroquine to 13 countries, either as humanitarian aid or as commercial sales. Several neighbouring countries are being provided the drug as part of humanitarian aid.

Also read: Did coronavirus originate from China? Trump says US investigating

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Rezaul H Laskar
Rezaul Hasan Laskar is Foreign Editor with the Hindustan Times, which he joined in 2015. He began as a journalist in his hometown of Shillong in northeast India and has worked in newspapers and wire services over the years. He moved to New Delhi in 1997 and initially focused on defence, national security, Jammu and Kashmir and the northeast, while also working of foreign policy and international relations. He has been part of the media delegation accompanying PMs on foreign visits and has reported from destinations ranging from Tibet to Ukraine. Between 2007 and 2013, he was the Press Trust of India correspondent in Pakistan, one of only two Indian journalists allowed to report from the country. He extensively covered Pakistan’s domestic politics and the life of the common people, as well as the fallout of the 2008 Mumbai attacks on India-Pakistan relations and the subsequent trial in Pakistan of the suspects involved in the attack. As part of his reportage in Pakistan, he travelled the breadth of the country, from the Swat Valley to Balochistan. Reza’s first gig in journalism was writing a weekly music column, and music – especially classic rock – remains a keen interest. He is also a movie buff and a keen photographer.Read More

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