Chinese firm comes to Mumbai’s aid in COVID-19 fight

It’s a case of India-China cooperation through thick and thin.  Fosun Hive, a Chinese multinational company, has promptly responded to the Mumbai administration’s request for surgical masks as the city hospitals witness a steady increase in the number of people turning up for coronavirus (COVID-19) tests. The company said that it donated the first batch of 5,000 surgical masks to the city administration, and more supplies will be sent if there is a need. These masks were initially kept for the affected areas in China but now redirected to India as the situation improves in the country, the company said in a statement. The masks will be used at the Kasturba Hospital, which is the government’s centralized treatment and quarantine center for Covid-19. Earlier, Dr Daksha Shah, the deputy executive health officer of the Public Health Department, had requested the administration for the masks to cope with the demand. Fosun Hive India’s CEO Gautam Ahuja, Managing Director Apurva Muthalia and Executive Director of Overseas Asset Management Support Ben Guo arranged the transfer of the supplies. The Fosun team responded to the consulate-general of China after it called for support in response to the government’s plea. “Since the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, Fosun has stood at the forefront of epidemic prevention, with its global procurement network covering 23 countries,” it said in the statement. “Through thick and thin. Through defeat and win”, a Chinese proverb, which the company printed on the boxes of the medical supplies delivered to India as a show of solidarity. As of March 1, Fosun collected 2.963 million medical protection supplies across the world, including 1.12 million protection suits, 1.55 million facial masks, 93 thousand protective goggles, and 200000 medical gloves, and 900 respirators, the company said. The company has deployed resources to support the efforts of Japan, South Korea, Italy, France, Germany, India, and other countries and regions against the epidemic, it added. (Sanjeeb Baruah contributed inputs for this article; edited by Shweta Aggarwal)