The Australian Consulate-General, Chennai, has come forward to join hands with India in its fight against COVID-19.
It has announced support to Christian Medical College Hospital (CMCH), Vellore to set up additional beds and CabDost, a social enterprise, to feed the needy in South India.
According to a statement, the Consulate is providing around Rs. 15 lakh to help set up a 12-bedded ICU facility at the CMC hospital in Vellore. The funding will cover procurement, installation and commissioning of essential equipment including food pumps, a defibrillator and an ECG machine.
The consulate is also providing Rs. 8 lakh to CabDost, a socially-driven tech-based start up working in the financially advisory space and helping taxi drivers. This amount will help them provide food kits, financial coaching and tax filing support to needy families in South India, especially Tamil Nadu, over a two-month period.
Sarah Kirlew, Australian Consul General to South India, said Australia was pleased to partner with CMC Vellore and CabDost. "Our funding will help provide essential medical services to those in need, while helping those suffering financially as a result of the pandemic," she said.
J.V. Peter, Director of CMC Vellore, said that the institution thanks Australia for its generous donation towards COVID work. "Being a referral hospital for several districts, our COVID ICUs continue to be full. The donation from Australia was one of the earliest contributions towards our efforts to expand the COVID ICU capacity from 12 to 163," he said.
Yamuna Sastry, founder, CabDost and Co-Founder, Dvara Money, said : "We at Dvara Money have been working tirelessly to reach out to the gig economy workers and help them cope with the raging crisis that has affected their livelihoods. The grant by Australia to CabDost, now merged with Dvara Money, will allow us to help over 1500 vulnerable families." She added her organisation will also impart training to ensure that households are better prepared in terms of money management.
As comprehensive strategic partners, Australia has committed around Rs. 210 crore to provide critical support to India. Australia has delivered over 30 tonnes worth of medical supplies, including 3,000 ventilators and 250 oxygen concentrators to India.
