COVID-19 crisis: Despite major logistical challenges due to the Coronavirus lockdown across the country, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has managed to dispatch emergency aid of 200,000 Hydroxychloroquine tablets to the Dominican Republic (DR).
A source confirming this to Financial Express Online said that “The help to Dominican Republic had to be rushed to help in its fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.”
“Though everything was closed, the MEA was constantly in touch with various courier services that would carry the consignment to the Dominican Republic. However, DHL informed that the collection of consignments from India have been put on hold throughout the lockdown period,” said the source quoted above.
Since the government had decided to send the emergency assistance to DR, the consignment of 200,000 HCQ tablets reached the warehouse of M/s HLL in Delhi earlier this week.
Then the search for flights started – this was to send the huge consignment to PMI New York. “The plan was to send it to the PMI in New York and from there the onward journey to DR. However that was not materializing” explained the source.
The option of sending it on an evacuation flight organized by the Brazilian embassy for its citizens stranded here also did not work.
On April 15, a Delta cargo Flight DL8875 which was leaving from Mumbai for Atlanta was identified.
Explaining the whole journey the source said, “The MEA team was faced by another challenge when it realized that the consignment from the warehouse in Delhi cannot be sent to Mumbai. Alternate solutions were being explored like getting another set of the same medicines from HLL Mumbai. Unfortunately, this did not work. All the delay was due to the lockdown. It was then decided to take the Bluedart flight from Delhi to Mumbai. With the coordination between Bluedart and Delta Airlines and their custom agent – M/s Odyssey Logistics Pvt Ltd., the emergency shipment left on board the flight, after clearing customs at the Mumbai airport.”
As a true friend, in these tough times, Indian officials in coordination with the Indian Mission in Cuba, PMI in New York, Delta Airlines, Blue Dart Courier ensured that the HCQ reach DR to help fight the COVID-19 outbreak.
