Ahmedabad NGO converts rickshaws into ambulances

The Gujrat based NGO is helping auto rickshaw drivers convert their vehicles into ambulances to take Covid-19 patients to hospitals. The service is free of cost and is run by an online service. Rickshaw drivers are available on call based on nearby locations. Currently the service has converted 14 rickshaws into ambulances while more are scheduled to be added soon.

Auto rickshaw drivers have been provided with PPE safety kits to ensure their safety. Drivers have also been given sterilizing equipment to clean their vehicles after a Covid positive patient has used the service.

As of now, the service is used to transfer patients to hospitals or to laboratories for tests and CT scans. The foundation has stated that the aim is to be at the patient’s location within 20 minutes of placing the call.

Panaah Foundation has said that the service will soon include the provision of oxygen inside the rickshaw while certain medications deemed necessary for coronavirus positive patients will also be provided in the ride.

India is in the midst of a virulent second wave of the pandemic that has swamped the country, leading to a collapse of the healthcare system. Hospitals are running out of oxygen and beds are unavailable. Many patients are dying in ambulances, waiting for a bed outside hospital gates. Crematoriums and graveyards have been swamped, with funeral pyres being burnt in makeshift grounds and parking lots.

The BJP government has come under severe criticism for allowing the virus to run rampant and ignoring the warnings that healthcare workers and scientists had given to officials. Additionally, the government allowed religious congregations including Kumbh where approximately 3.8 million people gathered in Hardhwar to bathe in the Ganges river. Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself carried on with his electoral campaign in Bengal, asking people to attend his rallies, leading to superspreader events.