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Covid-19: More UAE companies, community groups step in to help India

Dubai - Abu Dhabi-based Indian businessman Yusuff Ali MA has pledged INR 50 million towards the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund in the Covid-hit south Indian state of Kerala.

Charitable organisations and private firms across the UAE are now stepping in to extend their support to India as the Covid-19 crisis worsens back home.

Abu Dhabi-based Indian businessman Yusuff Ali MA has pledged INR 50 million towards the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund in the Covid-hit south Indian state of Kerala. while Dubai-based Danube Home announced it would donate 10 per cent of profits from its sales in Dubai for May, which run into millions, to mitigate Covid-19 pains in India.

Recently, an Abu Dhabi-based Indian community group banded together to send 100 oxygen cylinders to Nagpur city in India’s Maharashtra, and UAE-based medical group Aster DM Healthcare has made a field hospital operational Kerala in five days to meet the growing demand for hospital beds.

Electronics retailer Jacky’s has also launched a direct-to-door oxygen concentrator delivery service so UAE residents can send the much-needed machines to their loved ones.

KM Noordeen, Chairman of the Nammude Arogyam Charitable Trust (NACT), Alpha Charitable Trust and Dubai-based businessman, told Khaleej Times that the Alpha Palliative Care in UAE had sent 180 oxygen cylinders and three ventilators free of cost to Nammude Arogyam Community Hospital (Nach) in Kerala on Friday. Then trust is run with support from UAE expatriates.

“Out of 180 oxygen cylinders, 80 are jumbo size, with a 40 to 50 litres capacity each. These cylinders will be used to enhance oxygen availability in the centralised oxygen supply.

In Kerala, though there is not much oxygen shortage, there is a great scarcity for the cylinders,” explained Noordeen.

NACH is a not-for-profit hospital setup by non-resident Indians in the UAE and is owned by NACT. Alpha Palliative Care also operates a vaccination centre (CVC) and offers a CVC on wheels option for bedridden patients. The hospital has now been wholly converted towards the care of Covid-19 patients.

Noordeen said, “NACH has 10 ICUs, 40 high dependency beds and 60 ward beds. The hospital is all set to commence the services from Sunday, May 9, subject to the final approval of the authorities.”

“The hospital has a bed strength of 60 in the wards, 40 in high dependency rooms and ten beds in the ICU supported by ventilators. The treatment is subsidised in such a way that the people at the bottom of the economic pyramid can avail the same quality treatment,” he explained.

Alpha Palliative Care, working under the umbrella of Alpha Charitable Trust, is the largest chain providing palliative care in India.

Vaccination centre on wheels for palliative care patients

“Covid-19 Pandemic has thrown a large challenge on Alpha, which is permitted to run a Corona Vaccination Centre (CVC) in its name at Edamuttam in Thrissur District, the only palliative care organisation with this distinction,” he explained. However, most of the people under palliative care cannot come to any CVC due to their physical and medical conditions.

“We have designed corona vaccination centres on wheels to secure the lives of patients and families. The mobile units will visit 16 of Alpha’s 18 Link Centres on pre-decided days. The community volunteers of the link centres will bring the patients to the centre by using their home care vehicles,” he added.

dhanusha@khaleejtimes.com