Coronavirus: MG Motor announces Affordable Ventilator Challenge
The winning startup will get a grant of Rs 10 lakh and production support from MG Motor.
MG Motor India on Thursday announced Affordable Ventilator Challenge to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. Part of its Developer Program and Grant initiative, Indian startups stand a chance to be involved in the carmaker’s efforts to fight coronavirus related medical emergency. The winning startup will be given production startup to manufacturer ventilators at MG Motor’s Halol plant in Gujarat.
A ventilator is a medical equipment which takes over the body's breathing process when a disease has caused the lungs to fail or are under stress. According to the World Health Organisation, while 80 percent of people with COVID-19 do not need hospital treatment. However, one in six patients become seriously ill and can develop breathing difficulties.
To alleviate these conditions, doctors use a ventilator to push air with increased levels of oxygen into the lungs.
The shortage of ventilators, not just in India but around the world, has led carmakers shift to emergency manufacturing of ventilators. The challenge though is to make them as affordable as possible because of the large scale of requirement.
Speaking about the initiative, Rajeev Chaba, President and Managing Director of MG Motor India, said, “The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to a dire need of ventilators to take care of the growing number of patients. There is an extreme shortage of ventilators in the country and those available are very expensive for mass adoption. As a responsible corporate citizen, MG Motor India is committed to fighting this pandemic. Incentivising medical innovation through a financial grant to the most viable prototype is the most effective channel to do our bit for the community.”
The company had earlier also announced a donation of Rs 2 crore as medical aid to fight and overcome the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. Rajeev on Wednesday also announced that he will be donating one month of his salary to fight the coronavirus pandemic.
Applications for MG Motor’s Affordable Ventilator Challenge will be accepted till April 15, 2020. The evaluation and shortlisting process will be completed by April 20 and the winner will be announced on April 21, 2020.
(Edited by Kanishk Singh)