Highlights:
- Rahul Gandhi alleges public money is used to buy sub-standard products
- Firm’s Co-Founder hit back saying he would be happy to give a detailed demonstration
- The company’s Co-Founder says Rahul Gandhi is not a doctor and should have done his due diligence
AgVa Healthcare, the Ventilator manufacturer, yesterday, hit back at Rahul Gandhi saying the former President of Congress party is not a doctor and the company would be “happy to give him a detailed demonstration” of their product.
In accordance with the AtmaNirbhar Bharat initiative or the Self Reliant India, some ventilators were procured from AgVa Healthcare to tackle the Coronavirus outbreak in India through the PMCARES Fund.
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Rahul Gandhi, who has been vocal on Twitter and news channels about how unhappy he is with the approach of the Indian Government of handling the pandemic, accused the government of procuring “Sub-Standard” products. In his tweet dated 5th July, he said, “#PMCares opacity is:
1. Putting Indian lives at risk.
2. Ensuring public money is used to buy sub-standard products.
#BJPfailsCoronaFight”
#PMCares opacity is:
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) July 5, 2020
1. Putting Indian lives at risk.
2. Ensuring public money is used to buy sub-standard products.#BJPfailsCoronaFighthttps://t.co/6lIAPH0SJL
Co-Founder of AgVa Healthcare, Professor Diwakar Vaish said, “Rahul Gandhi is not a doctor. He is an intelligent man. He should have done due diligence before making such allegations. He should have consulted doctors. I am ready to give a detailed demonstration in the hospital on any patient,”.
Rahul Gandhi, tagging a news report from the HuffPost, headlined, “PMCARES Ventilator Maker AgVa Fudged Software To Hide Poor Performance, Ex-Employees Say”. HuffPost reported that the doctors are saying these ventilators – designed and modified for coronavirus treatment – are not a substitute to the high-end ventilators.
Prof Vaish, however, said that these allegations were a result of upsetting the foreign cartel which supplies high-end ventilators to India.
Prof Vaish was quoted by a leading news agency as saying, “In this, international vendor nexus is very strong. Just like when Indian military equipment was indigenised, there was a lot of negative reviews. The same thing is happening here. What a Rs 10 lakh ventilator does, ours is doing for Rs 1.5 lakh. Will international associations, international vendors accept this? That is why they are trying to sabotage,”.
Delhi’s LNJP Hospital did not reject the AgVa ventilator, Mr Vaish said.
Prof Vaish added, “As far as Mumbai is concerned, JJ Hospital and St George Hospital got the installation done through a third-party. They did not install it properly. Hence, their doctors could not use it. If you put diesel instead of petrol, what would happen?”.
The Government of India had ordered 10,000 COVID-model ventilators from AgVa Healthcare to combat the Coronavirus outbreak in the country. The funds were utilized from PMCARES which the Congress party said is being run like a “seemingly personal” fund of the Prime Minister of India which is not even subjected to audit by any public authority, or the Right To Information Act.
Rahul Gandhi has targeted PMCares Fund earlier also.
“Why is Indian testing so low? Because PM does not care,” the Congress leader tweeted, suggesting to the Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund or PMCARES Fund. “India is simply not testing enough to fight the #Covid19 virus. Making people clap & shining torches in the sky isn’t going to solve the problem,” his tweet read.
