India sends medical team to Kuwait to combat COVID-19

India has sent a team of 15 doctors to Kuwait for combating the COVID-19 outbreak, following a request from the Kuwaiti government for help in testing and treatment of the affected people and training of personnel.The Indian team reached the Gulf nation on April 11 and is expected to stay there for two weeks to supplement Kuwait’s efforts against the virus, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement.Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Kuwaiti counterpart Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah had agreed for a coordinated effort against the pandemic in a recent phone conversation.External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and his Kuwaiti counterpart Shaikh Ahmed Nasser Al-Mohammed Al-Sabah, also had discussions in this regard following the two leaders’ conversation. “India and Kuwait share a strong partnership based on historical, cultural, economic, and people-to-people-contacts. India is reaching out to Kuwait to further complement its efforts to fight the menace effectively,” the Ministry said in the statement.Indians constitute the largest group of expatriates in Kuwait, with an estimated population of around 10 lakhs.The oil-rich nation has reported one death and over 1000 COVID-19 cases so far, while India has recorded around 240 deaths and more than 7000 coronavirus infections. The Indian government has extended a national lockdown by two more weeks till April 30, following a meeting of the chief ministers with PM Modi last week. The initial period of the restrictions was to end on April 14. A majority of the members in the meeting favored an extension of the lockdown, which they felt, has been useful. India’s healthcare infrastructure, vis-a-vis the population, is hugely disproportionate to handle patients in case the situation exacerbates.