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Google, Microsoft and Amazon pledge resources for support against COVID crisis in India

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Laxitha Mundhra
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Google, Microsoft and Amazon pledge resources for support against COVID crisis in India

India has seen a massive jump in infections in the second wave. It has been a true test to our hospital infrastructure as we are struggling to deal with the increasing cases. Most of all, there has also been a shortage of oxygen for patients in many cities across India. This has already forced the government to import oxygen and shift industrial production for medical purposes. Lending a hand to the government, the industry has also come together to extend whatever support they can. Among them, tech giants Google, Microsoft and Amazon have pledged their resources and grants to the crisis.

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Read MoreStartups founders crowdfund to help Delhi hospitals with Oxygen Concentrators

Google pledges Rs 135 crore for Covid support in India

Google CEO Sundar Pichai on Monday said that he was devastated to see the worsening Covid crisis in India. Thus, he shared a blog post pledging Rs 135 crore for medical supplies and support in the country. Iterating the idea, Google India Country Head Sanjay Gupta said that the company will work with local governments in India to support them during the crisis.

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"Today we’re announcing Rs 135 Crore ($18 million) in new funding for India. This includes two grants from Google.org, Google’s philanthropic arm, totalling Rs 20 Crore ($2.6 million). The first is to GiveIndia to provide cash assistance to families hit hardest by the crisis to help with their everyday expenses. The second will go to UNICEF to help get urgent medical supplies. This includes oxygen and testing equipment, to where it’s needed most in India. It also includes donations from our ongoing employee giving campaign; so far more than 900 Googlers have contributed Rs 3.7 Crore ($500,000) for organizations supporting high-risk and marginalized communities", he wrote.

Microsoft pledges its resources, and technology to aid relief efforts and oxygen crisis

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Microsoft CEO, in a tweet, has also pledged support to aid relief efforts and purchase critical oxygen concentration devices.

Amazon partners with ACT Grants and Temasek

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Amazon India on Sunday also said it has joined hands with ACT Grants, Temasek Foundation, Pune Platform for Covid-19 Response (PPCR) and other partners to urgently airlift over 8,000 oxygen concentrators and 500 BiPAP machines from Singapore. The Projected titled Mission Vayu aims to donate medical equipment to hospitals and public institutions; thus, augment their capacity to help Covid-19 infected patients across multiple cities.

Amazon India is also procuring over 1500 oxygen concentrators and other critical medical equipment that it will donate to hospitals and medical facilities in partnership with multiple non-profits including Swasth, Concern India and impact organizations like ACT Grants and Sattva Consulting. The comoany also said that it will bear the cost of airlifting these machines. It will procure them through multiple funders including ACT Grants and PPCR, from Singapore to India, through Air India and other international carriers.

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Further, the PMO on Sunday said that they will set up 551 dedicated pressure swing Adsorption (PSA) medical oxygen generation plants in public health facilities across the country through PM Cares Fund to boost availability of the life-saving gas.

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