AstraZeneca pledges $250,000 as humanitarian aid to India to fight COVID-19 pandemic

AstraZeneca, a drug major, announced on May 11, 2021, that it has pledged $2,50,000 (over Rs. 1.8 crores) in humanitarian aid to India. The funds will support the relief activities amid the second wave of Coronavirus sweeping across the country.

The humanitarian aid to India is part of USD 1 million which the British-Swedish multinational has assigned for the relief initiatives across the communities which have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Coronavirus pandemic has continued to cause devastation all over the world. Currently, India has been facing an incredible humanitarian crisis from a surge of COVID-19 cases and related deaths all over the country.

AstraZeneca extends humanitarian aid:

In a statement on Twitter, AstraZeneca stated that the company has pledged 1 million USD humanitarian aid in order to support the covid relief activities in India as well as other communities that have been hit by the pandemic.

To address the urgent crisis in India, we are pledging humanitarian aid that will provide oxygen concentrators, medicines, PPE and other supplies via @DirectRelief. We also remain focused on fair, equitable access to vaccination to help end the pandemic. https://t.co/KIWOwrzwt3 pic.twitter.com/IWE0EJUiSD

— AstraZeneca (@AstraZeneca) May 11, 2021

The aid includes directing USD 250,000 direct relief to support their efforts in India, which will include the distribution of medicines, oxygen concentrators as well as Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for providing treatment and care for those suffering from COVID-19.

Covishield: AstraZeneca vaccine in India

The drugmaker while informing about the humanitarian aid stated that approximately 10% of India’s population has received one dose of our vaccine, which is known in India as Covishield. It accounts for 90% of all vaccination.

AstraZeneca’s partner in India, Serum Institute in Pune, already has been producing more COVID-19 vaccine doses than any other organization all over the world.

The drugmaker further emphasized that access to vaccination is a critical component in tackling the pandemic. It is why the company has devoted its resources, time, and energy to developing a vaccine that is available at profit during the pandemic and has been supplied equitably to as many people as possible.

AstraZeneca-SII works together to scale up vaccine production:

The CEO of Serum Institute, Adar Poonawalla extended his gratitude to AstraZeneca for their unwavering support. He mentioned that both have been working together to scale up the vaccine production and are committed to supplying more vaccines to India by July 2021.

The CEO of AstraZeneca Pascal Soriot expressed hoped that through the increased vaccination, donations of medicines and equipment, humanitarian relief efforts, India will recover from the ongoing crisis. He assured that the global community stands together with India and has been working tirelessly to end the pandemic as quickly as possible.