Washington: Microblogging giant Twitter has donated USD 15 million to help address the Covid-19 crisis in India. At present India is battling the unprecedented second wave of the deadly Covid-19 pandemic. Twitter CEO Jack Patrick Dorsey gave this information through a tweet Monday. He said that the amount has been donated to three non-governmental organisations – Care, Aid India and Sewa International USA. While CARE has been given USD 10 million, Aid India and Sewa International USA have received USD 2.5 million each.
“Sewa International is a Hindu faith-based, humanitarian, non-profit service organisation. This grant will support the procurement of lifesaving equipment such as oxygen concentrators, ventilators, BiPAP (Bilevel Positive Airway Pressure) and CPAP (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure) machines as part of Sewa’s ‘Help India Defeat COVID-19’ campaign,” the San Francisco-based company said in a statement. “Equipment will be distributed to government hospitals and Covid-19 care centres and hospitals,” Twitter added.
Reacting to the announcement, Sewa International’s vice-president for Marketing and Fund Development Sandeep Khadkekar thanked Dorsey for his generous donation. He said it is gratifying that Sewa’s work has been recognised.
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“We are a volunteer-driven non-profit organisation. We believe in serving all, following the sacred Hindu benediction, ‘Sarve Bhavantu Sukhinah’ – ‘May all be happy’,” Khadkekar told this agency.
“Our administrative costs are about five per cent annually. It means that every dollar a donor offers, we spend 95 cents of it on the work that it is earmarked for. In these past two weeks, we have seen how overwhelmed India’s healthcare system is. We want to do as much as we can to come to the aid of people who are deeply affected. Twitter’s generosity will go a long way in helping us do the work we want to do,” added Khadkekar.
CARE is a leading humanitarian organisation fighting global poverty. Twitter said the grant of USD 10 million will support CARE’s urgent action to help address the deadly second wave of Covid-19 infections devastating India.
“Funds will be used to supplement government efforts by setting up temporary COVID-19 care centres; providing oxygen, PPE kits and other critically needed emergency supplies for frontline health workers; and addressing vaccine hesitancy and helping ensure that people get vaccinated, particularly in remote, marginalised communities in India,” Twitter’s statement said.