Govt orders procurement of 1,000 more

A Mysuru-based firm is in the spotlight as the state government looks to procure ventilators as part of its battle against Covid-19. Health Minister B Sriramulu on Monday announced that the government will procure about 1,000 ventilators to handle any medical emergency scenario in the coming days.

Medical ventilators are said to be crucial in treating patients particularly Covid-19 suspects. While most of the ventilator manufacturing countries have imposed a ban on the export of ventilators, Mysuru-based Skanray Technologies, one of the few domestic manufacturers of ventilators, has agreed to supply them.

Sriramulu said that the government will be purchasing 10 lakh masks and 5 lakh personal protection equipment. The decision comes at a time when the minutes of a union textiles ministry meeting revealed that an order placed for 10 lakh 3-ply masks with a vendor yielded only 2 lakh masks. The vendor also sought a 266% revision of prices. However, the minister did not mention the vendor’s name who will be supplying the masks and personal protection equipment.