1,100 indigenous manufacturers of PPE kits developed by Centre till date: Choubey

1,100 indigenous manufacturers of personal protection equipment (PPE) kits have been developed by the government till date, most of them being from the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector,” Choubey said. He said the Ministry of Health, in its guidelines, on rational use of PPE kits has issued specifications and standards to be followed, including medical masks for use by healthcare workers and other front line workers.

A total of 1,100 indigenous manufacturers of personal protection equipment (PPE) kits have been developed by the government till date, most of them being from the MSME sector, the Lok Sabha was informed on Wednesday. In a written reply, Minister of State for Health Ashwini Choubey told the Lower House that the production capacity of PPE coveralls is nearly 5 lakh per day with potential for additional capacity creation to meet the demand.

He was talking about increase in the production capacity of PPE kits in the country since the beginning of the lockdown. "From no indigenous manufacturer to begin with... 1,100 indigenous manufacturers of personal protection equipment (PPE) kits have been developed by the government till date, most of them being from the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector," Choubey said.

He said the Ministry of Health, in its guidelines, on rational use of PPE kits has issued specifications and standards to be followed, including medical masks for use by healthcare workers and other front line workers. These specifications are available in public domain through the website of Ministry of Health, he said.

The Government of India has also issued advisory and manual on use of homemade protective covers for face and mouth for use by general public, the minister said. On steps taken by the Centre for burning or deep burial of used face masks/medical kits across the country, Choubey said the Central Pollution Control Board and the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change have issued guidelines for "handling, treatment and disposal of waste generated during treatment/diagnosis/quarantine of COVID-19 patients, both in facility-based and home setting".

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