Members of credit-card payment platform CRED from across India have come together to contribute surgical masks to over 500,000 frontline professionals in the battle against COVID-19.
This effort, CRED says, will protect healthcare workers at primary health centres (PHCs), the first line of defence for vulnerable sections of society, including pharmacists, MHWs, and ASHA workers.
In the past two days, over 15,000 CRED members have come forward for this initiative by spending CRED coins that have gone towards protecting more than 100,000 frontliners. Their contributions will be channelled through online platform GiveIndia to Child Rights and You (CRY), which will distribute the masks on ground.
“We are humbled that all the members of CRED want to partner with us during this unprecedented emergency. Wanting to help those who are helping us by doing their job, highlights the strength of humanity. We hope by joining forces with organisations like CRED, we can make a real difference,” GiveIndia CEO Atul Satija said.
During the first phase of this project, CRY will work in four blocks to donate masks which include Delhi, Gurugram, Faridabad and Panchkula covering 450 primary healthcare centres. As the movement grows, the initiative will expand to other locations in India.
“Currently, our country is going through an overwhelming crisis caused by the Coronavirus pandemic, and we are committed to do everything to prevent and delay further spreading of the virus. Responding to the emerging needs of the hour, we would support healthcare workers like the ANMs, AWC workers, MHWs and ASHAs with an adequate supply of masks and gloves, to ensure that they are safe and well-protected while reaching out to serve children, expecting and lactating mothers in our intervention areas,” Puja Marwaha, CEO at CRY said.
“It’s truly reassuring to join hands with CRED as they come on board through GiveIndia initiative, with an aim to support healthcare workers. We do believe that, together, we will be able to address the challenge of limited supplies of personal protective equipment for the health workers in the worst affected of our intervention areas,” she added.
Several companies have been coming forward to donate masks, protective equipment and even sanitisers for those who need it the most.
IIT Madras incubated cleantech startup Air Ok Technologies too, has donated as many as 25,000 masks for doctors and other medical professionals at two of the biggest hospitals in the National Capital Region – Indraprastha Apollo Hospital at Jasola and Medanta – The Medicity in Gurugram. As part of the drive, Apollo hospital received 10,000 masks while Medanta got 15,000 masks.