ICICI Foundation to donate 1800 oxygen concentrators to hospitals in the Himalayan belt and tribal areas

Over 700 hospitals in 17 states covering these regions will receive the concentrators

by Suman Gupta

Mumbai: ICICI Foundation for Inclusive Growth (ICICI Foundation), the CSR arm of ICICI Group, today announced that it has firmed up plans to donate 1,800 oxygen concentrators to sub-divisional hospitals in the tough terrain of Himalayan belt and remote tribal areas of the country in 2021-22. The donation is aimed at providing citizens in these regions with immediate oxygen support in the event of a medical emergency.

ICICI Foundation is providing these concentrators free-of-cost to over 700 sub-divisional hospitals across nearly 175 districts in 17 states. The first batch of over 300 concentrators has been dispatched.

ICICI Foundation has procured these high-quality oxygen concentrators from BPL Medical Technologies and Phillips India. These companies have an extensive service network across the country, which shall ensure prompt and efficient maintenance support for the machines, as and when required. Further, the Foundation is also providing a power back up system so that the concentrators can filter and produce medical-grade oxygen uninterrupted even in case of a power breakdown.

ICICI Foundation has also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with BPL Medical Technologies to co-create a specialised skill training module on installation and servicing of oxygen concentrators. This module will be part of the curriculum being offered by ICICI Academy For Skills, a part of ICICI Foundation, that imparts pro bono vocational training to lesser privileged youth. Post training, the successful trainees can earn livelihood by servicing oxygen concentrators.

Mr. Saurabh Singh, President, ICICI Foundation for Inclusive Growth said, “ICICI Group has a long-standing legacy of contributing to nation-building and taking care of the well-being of citizens. Since the outbreak of pandemic, ICICI Group has undertaken relief activity in over 551 districts across all states and union territories of the country. The Group has spent Rs 200 crore to support the nation in its fight against the pandemic. The donation includes the Group’s contribution to the ‘PM Cares Fund’, supply of materials like ventilators, sanitisers, masks and personal protective equipment to state governments as well as local authorities, and upgrading medical infrastructure in several parts of the country. As part of this effort, the Foundation has set up of 17 oxygen plants, contributed nearly 100 ventilators and provided 30 ambulances. Now, it is donating 1800 high-quality oxygen concentrators to sub-divisional hospitals located in the Himalayan belt and remote tribal areas of the country. This initiative aims to make critical emergency heath support immediately accessible to residents in the small towns of these regions. We believe that this initiative will contribute significantly in our battle against the pandemic, especially in the challenging terrains and remote areas of our country.

Our partnership with BPL Medical Technologies will help in skilling lesser privileged youth to service oxygen concentrators. During the recent ferocious wave of COVID-19, large numbers of oxygen concentrators have been deployed across the country, which will need periodic maintenance across their lifecycle. This opens up a new opportunity for livelihood in the field of servicing these equipment. The skill training modules customised for servicing of oxygen concentrators will plug this gap for maintenance and will provide livelihood for underprivileged youth.”

About ICICI Foundation for Inclusive Growth: ICICI Foundation for Inclusive Growth (ICICI Foundation), the CSR arm of the ICICI Group, has been engaged in the areas of skill development and sustainable livelihoods, environment conservation, financial inclusion, healthcare and education across urban and rural India. Through its three vehicles– ICICI Academy for Skills, ICICI Rural Livelihood Programme and ICICI Rural Self Employment Training Institutes– the Foundation has imparted training to over 5.80 lakh individuals to help them earn sustainable livelihood.

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