Covid-19: India lifts ban on export of locally made ventilators

Buoyed by falling Covid-19 fatality rate across the country, India has decided to lift the ban on export of indigenously-manufactured ventilators.

A group of senior ministers dealing with the pandemic, at a meeting in New Delhi on Saturday, agreed to the proposal of the Ministry of Health allowing the export of made-in-India ventilators, reports our New Delhi correspondent.

This decision has been communicated to the Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) for further action to facilitate the export of indigenously manufactured ventilators, an official statement issued on Saturday evening said.

The decision comes on the heels of India continuing to maintain a progressively low rate of case fatality of Covid-19 patients, which currently stands at 2.15%, which means that fewer numbers of active cases are on ventilators, the Health Ministry said.

As on July 31, only 0.22% of the active Covid-19 cases were on ventilators across India.

Besides, there has been substantial growth in the domestic manufacturing capacity of ventilators. Compared to January 2020, there are now more than 20 domestic manufacturers for ventilators.

The ban on export of all types of ventilators was imposed in March to ensure domestic availability to effectively fight the pandemic.

With export of ventilators having been allowed, it is hoped that Indian manufacturers and exporters would find new markets for domestic ventilators abroad.

The total number of Covid-19 cases across the country surged to 17,50,723 today with the addition of 54,735 new patients in the last 24 hours while the total death toll rose to 37,364, according to the Health Ministry update.