The tech giant Google said Google.org, its philanthropic arm, has announced a grant of Rs 113 crore (USD 15.5 million) to support procurement and installation of about 80 oxygen generation plants, to help strengthen India’s healthcare infrastructure and workforce in rural areas, as India prepares for the third Covid wave.
Google.org will support procurement and installation of about 80 oxygen generation plants in healthcare facilities in high-need and rural locations with new grants of about Rs 90 crore (USD 12.5 million) to GiveIndia and about Rs 18.5 crore (USD 2.5 million) to PATH. It will also finance the efforts of Apollo Medskills to help upskill 20,000 frontline health workers through specialised training in COVID-19 management and strengthen the stressed rural health workforce and rural health systems. Google India Country Head and Vice President Sanjay Gupta said, “As India slowly emerges from the crisis of the past few months, it’s been humbling and inspiring to see individuals, communities, institutions, and governments work together to manage the impact on a scale we haven’t experienced before. Google.org will also make an Rs 3.6 crore grant to NGO ARMMAN to run skilling programmes for 180,000 Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs) and 40,000 Auxiliary Nurse Midwives (ANMs) in 15 states in the country.
The new commitments build on the Rs 135 crore ($18 million) funding that was announced by Google in April for COVID-19 response. In addition to this, Googlers worldwide have donated and helped raise $7 million for organisations supporting high-risk and marginalised communities.
