US announces additional $41 million COVID-19 relief fund for India to raise testing and treatment capacity

Washington: The US has announced an additional $41 million assistance to help India respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and strengthen the country’s preparedness for the future health emergencies, taking the total aid to more than USD 200 million. In April and May, India struggled with the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic with more than 3,00,000 daily new cases. Hospitals were reeling under a shortage of medical oxygen and beds. India came to the assistance of the United States during this country’s time of need, and now the United States stands with the people of India as they continue to battle the COVID-19 pandemic, the US Agency for International Development said on Monday. USAID announced an additional $41 million in support to help India respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and strengthen the country’s preparedness for COVID-19 and future health emergencies. USAID’s assistance will support access to COVID-19 testing, pandemic-related mental health services, timely referrals to medical services, and access to healthcare in remote areas, the independent agency of the US federal government primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance said. Through this additional funding, USAID will continue to partner with India to strengthen healthcare supply chains and electronic health information systems, support its vaccination efforts, and mobilize and coordinate private sector relief, it said. USAID has contributed more than $200 million for India’s COVID-19 relief and response efforts since the pandemic began, including more than $50 million in emergency supplies and training for more than 214,000 frontline health workers on infection prevention and control, benefitting more than 42 million Indians, according to a media release. The US is providing significant emergency assistance to the hardest-hit countries in South Asia, including India and Nepal, by allocating more than $300 million under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, which President Joe Biden had signed on 11 March. In May, Biden announced $100 million worth of COVID-19 assistance to India. The US-India Chambers of Commerce Foundation has raised more than $1.2 million for coronavirus-related efforts in India. With record-breaking fundraising, the US-India Chambers of Commerce Foundation has shipped or en route nearly 120 ventilators and over 1,000 oxygen concentrators, a release said on 3 June. Also, India will be a significant recipient of the US vaccines after Biden announced details of his administration’s decision to send 25 million COVID-19 shots to countries across the globe. India has been included in both the identified categories - direct supply to neighbours and partner countries, and under the COVAX initiative.