Ambassador’s Address to the Indian Community in Kuwait on the Covid 19 Situation in India and Assistance from Abroad Kuwait, May 7, 2021 My fellow citizens of India in Kuwait, Ladies and Gentlemen, Good Evening. Let me begin my address today by thanking His Highness Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Amir of the State of Kuwait and His Highness Sheikh Mishaal Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Crown Prince, for hosting the large Indian community in Kuwait and for looking after our community during the Covid 19 pandemic. The main topic of my interactive open house session last month, attended by many of you was the evolving Covid 19 pandemic and the many steps that the Embassy has taken in recent months in coordination with the authorities in Government of Kuwait, concerned authorities in Government of India and the various Indian associations and groups in Kuwait to address the many concerns of the Indian community in Kuwait and their families in India. We spoke about (i) Updated Database of Stranded Indians, those who lost their jobs, those who did not get their indemnities; (ii) Free Tele consultations by our Medical Doctors from Indian Doctors Forum; (iii) Food Distribution by Indian Community Support Group (ICSG); (iv) Special Counters at the Embassy for Registration for Vaccination; (v) Vaccine Registration Campaign being undertaken by various Associations; (vi) Registration for vaccines for those without Civil IDs; (vii) Legal Assistance for those in need; (viii) Medical Assistance for those in need; and (ix) Covid 19 Awareness campaign in association with organizations like IDF. This is a work in progress and we are making some progress despite the many challenges of Covid 19 pandemic we face. I have received a few queries requesting me to cover updates on these issues and topics like CBSE examinations in my address today. I will discuss these in in our next Open House interactive session later this month. In recent weeks, I have also been in engagement with the community in small groups, through various interviews with print and electronic media and also by joining the awareness programs being organized by various associations and groups. Today, I will focus on the evolving Covid 19 situation in India and the assistance being received from abroad. Before I do that, let me thank our doctors, nurses and medical professionals who are making many sacrifices in India, here in Kuwait and all across the world. It is their hard work and sacrifice that continue to save lives. Dear Friends, We are now suddenly faced with a new evolving situation due to spike in Covid 19 cases in India in recent weeks. I would not like to get into the scientific and medical aspects of the pandemic which is for scientists and medical experts to address. We will do a separate session on this in partnership with the Indian Doctors Forum later. The fact is that the second wave of Covid 19 pandemic has now hit our motherland hard. It has implications for us here in Kuwait too as the travel to and from India has been completely stopped. All flights including the air bubble which helped the Vande Bharat mission where Indians in Kuwait could return directly to India has also been stopped. The latest figures from India as on May 7 is over four lakh new cases in the last 24 hours; ten States including Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Karnataka, Kerala, Bihar, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan report 71.81% of the new cases; ten districts account for 25% of the total active cases in the country. The National Mortality Rate has been falling and currently stands at 1.09%. 3,915 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours. Ten States account for 74.48% of the new deaths. At the same time, the cumulative number of COVID19 vaccine doses administered has crossed 16.49 Cr today as the Phase-3 of the nationwide drive expands further. There are challenges and the country as a whole is addressing it. In India, we are now faced with a crisis situation similar to the one some countries and many cities across the globe faced last year. We have not forgotten the many disturbing visuals of 2020 from several countries including developed countries. India, despite having one sixth of the total population of the world, faced the first wave effectively with very low daily infection numbers. The whole of society and whole of government approach adopted by our leadership helped us win the fight against Covid 19 in the first phase. I recall the several discussions we had from this platform when we proudly presented India’s success story in managing the Covid 19 situation in the past one year. In fact, India was at the forefront of helping the world in addressing the challenges posed by Covid 19 crisis. Through Operation Sanjeevani and Vaccine Maitri, India established itself as a country with internationally relevant healthcare capacities. India established itself as a reliable global pharma hub supplying medicines and equipment to over 154 countries in the face of daunting logistical challenges. Indian HADR operations acquired global dimensions with the deployment Rapid Response Teams to Maldives, Kuwait, Mauritius and Comoros and with Mission SAGAR to Maldives, Mauritius, Madagascar, Comoros, Seychelles, Sudan, South Sudan, Djibouti, Eritrea, Vietnam and Cambodia. Our network of diplomatic missions played the key role in organizing the Vande Bharat Mission, the largest logistical mission of its type ever undertaken. This has facilitated the movement of more than 7 million people through lockdown and post-lockdown periods. We have also worked on the ‘Air Bubbles’ established with 27 countries. We are now faced with that kind of a situation that many countries and cities faced in the past. Our Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has spoken to the nation on several occasions during last two weeks; our Hon’ble External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar in his interview in London this week covered the topic extensively. I have circulated these speeches to our community and associations through social media. We will continue to share the updates to all community through our associations and social media. In my various meetings with the community groups and associations I have been briefing them on this, and I am happy to see the ongoing drive to mobilize support for India on these lines. In the meantime, I am getting a series of queries from the community and from our various associations on what more can be done, what should be done, how is it going, how do we ensure that the assistance has reached the destination etc. I have been answering them, talking to them over phone, by email etc. I thought it is important to address the community and brief you on the situation and update you on the assistance from abroad and particularly from our friendly State of Kuwait. Let me cover the queries that I received in the embassy following categories: (i) State of Assistance from Abroad: When India is faced with the second wave, we have seen how the world have come forward to help us. As External Affairs Minister Dr. Jaishankar said in his interview to ANI in London this week, I quote: “The kind of situation which I am seeing and you are seeing in Delhi, I will do everything in my power to get help to our people. So I will leverage all my relationships, I will call in every ‘I owe you’ I have and I have many because I have done my shift in the past and people know that. I had Foreign Minister saying this I would like to do this. There are people who say at least I am morally with you, I feel I like to do something, I have limitations…..For me, I have one objective; my people are going through a very difficult phase of Covid in the second wave. As Foreign Minister, as someone heading a Ministry which has relationships around the world, I will do everything which I have accumulated in many many years to help my people, its natural.” Unquote.

Referring to what our Embassies abroad can do to support our motherland, EAM said and I quote: “Your job is to ensure that the key requirements, today oxygen is the major requirement, pharmaceuticals, Remdesivir, other medicines are a requirement, vaccine supply chain is a requirement, so logistics for all of this is a requirement. I have embassies who are working with shipping lines, with airlines, different countries creating hubs, you know how big the oxygen challenge is, so we are getting liquid medical oxygen, we are getting cryogenic tankers, we are getting oxygen tanks, oxygen cylinders, you have to locate them, organize them, send them and you have seen now that support is flying in from different countries, all of that requires coordination. Now my message to Embassies is keep your eye on that and do not get distracted by the rest of debate…. Your focus should be right now a very serious situation back home, just like government is focused in addressing the pandemic at home single mindedly, you also please do that, we will deal with argument down the road, at the moment keep your eyes and energy focused on this.” Unquote. Government of India has been receiving international donations of Covid-19 relief medical supplies and equipment since 27 April from different countries including United Kingdom, Ireland, Romania, Russia, UAE, USA, Taiwan, Kuwait, France, Thailand, Germany, Uzbekistan, Belgium, Italy, etc.

(ii) Assistance from State of Kuwait: India and Kuwait have always stood with each other in times of difficulties. Kuwait was one of the first countries to come forward and offer support to India. The Council of Ministers of the Government of State of Kuwait, in a statement on 26 April, expressed solidarity and extended support to India. The official statement read: "Based on the distinguished friendship between the State of Kuwait and the Republic of India and the keenness of the State of Kuwait to alleviate the suffering of the friendly Indian people in the face of this health disaster, the Council of Ministers has decided to send oxygen and other relief components to the Republic of India urgently in solidarity with the friendly Indian people and in recognition of the exceptional circumstances experienced by friends in India." Foreign Minister His Excellency Sheikh Dr. Ahmed Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Sabah, in a phone call with External Affairs Minister Shri S. Jaishankar reiterated the keenness of the Government of Kuwait to provide emergency relief and support to India.

The ongoing assistance from Kuwait include: Kuwait Air Force Aircraft KAF 3201 Kuwait - Delhi reached on 4 May, 40 Tons of Assistance sent by Govt of State of Kuwait including Ventilators (11), Oxygen Cylinders (282), Oxygen Concentrator (60) and medicines and other medical equipment; INS Kolkata, departed Kuwait on 4 May with Kuwait Govt assistance of Liquid Medical Oxygen (Two 20 MT ISO cryo tankers totaling 40 MT LMO); Donation by Indian Community in Kuwait through Indian Community Support Group - Oxygen Cylinders (200), Oxygen concentrators (4); Kuwaiti merchant Ship departed on 5 May with Kuwait Govt assistance of Liquid Medical Oxygen (Three 25 MT semi-trailers totaling 75 MT LMO) and 1000 Oxygen cylinders; INS Kochi, departed Kuwait on 6 May with Kuwait Govt assistance of Liquid Medical Oxygen (Three 20 MT ISO cryo tankers totaling 60 MT LMO); Donation by Indian Community Oxygen Cylinders (800) & Oxygen concentrators (2); INS Tabar, departed Kuwait on 6 May with Kuwait Govt assistance of Liquid Medical Oxygen (Two 20 MT ISO cryo tankers totaling 40 MT LMO); Donation by Indian Community in Kuwait through Indian Community Support Group - Oxygen Cylinders (600).

(iii) Status of Utilization of the Assistance received: A streamlined and systematic mechanism for allocation of the support supplies received has been put into place by Government of India for effective distribution of the medical and other relief and support material. All donations are addressed to the Red Cross Society of India. A Standard Operating Procedure has been framed and implemented by the Health Ministry. A dedicated Coordination Cell has been created in the Health Ministry to coordinate the receipt and allocation of foreign COVID relief material as grants, aid and donations. This Cell started functioning from 26th April. All these relief medical supplies and equipment are being allocated by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in a timely manner to the 38 tertiary care institutions and 31 States, so far in the first tranche. This is done considering certain criteria like number of active cases, case fatality rate, positivity rate, need, etc. This will help to supplement the medical infrastructure of these Institutions and 31 States/UTs, and strengthen their clinical management capacities for prompt and effective clinical management of the hospitalized COVID 19 patients.

The cargo clearance and deliveries are facilitated without delay in coordination with agencies concerned. The deliveries and further installations are also being monitored by the Health Ministry on a regular basis. I invite you to go through the PIB releases every day for regular updates, I will also update it on Mission’s social media platforms. On May 6 the PIB release said, 1841 Oxygen Concentrators; 1814 Oxygen Cylinders; 09 Oxygen Generation Plants; 2403 ventilators/ Bi PAP/ C PAP; more than 2.8 L Remdesivir vials delivered. In fact, I get to see the daily updates on the details of the distribution of all donations received by Government of India. I will be happy to share it with all concerned to know the movement of their donations.

At the same time, in the Ministry of External Affairs, a 24x7 Covid Cell which was created to manage a global effort to assist millions of Indians stranded by successive lockdowns, is in the wake of the second wave of the pandemic, is coordinating and channelizing global efforts to source raw materials for our vaccines, pharma and medical industries, to source oxygen and oxygen producing equipment, and for coordinating the delivery of essential and relief supplies to India.

Let me reiterate that there are many logistics challenges such as having to match specifications of equipment with our units, installation of oxygen plants needing technical assistance, training, maintenance etc. Accessibility and immediate use of resources to save lives is an overriding consideration for determining the distribution of incoming relief material. All possible attempts are made to distribute the material immediately to ensure optimal use.

(iv) Efforts of the Indian community in Kuwait in mobilizing support: I have mentioned the support that has already gone to India from the community spearheaded by ICSG. I recall a meeting I held with ICSG, within three hours ICSG team came forward and told me we are sending 600 oxygen cylinders, within a few days they came forward and said we are sending another 600 more. Hats off to them, ICSG, IBPC, IDF, IIT/IIM and many associations and individuals others are spearheading a campaign to mobilise oxygen cylinders and other equipment.

At the same time, it is important to ensure that all contributions are made to these efforts after due verification. Additionally, please note that as part of the Standard Operating Procedure, all supplies of COVID-19 related equipment that is offered to be sent to India is to be routed through Indian Red Cross Society, which will receive it on behalf of Government of India.

Keeping in mind the need for having a dedicated national fund with the primary objective of dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, and to provide relief to the affected, ‘Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM CARES Fund)’ is currently in existence. Any clarification or queries with regard to dispatch of emergency medical supplies to India or transfer of funds to PM CARES Fund may be addressed to the Embassy.

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(v) Embassy to coordinate the assistance to be dispatched: I have set up a crisis management group of officers in the Mission to monitor the situation real time. We are available 24x7 for any clarification and assistance. The Embassy is also getting requests from various State Governments and Union Territories and each request is being response by the Embassy team. Any queries on this also is welcome.

Dear Friends, These are indeed extraordinarily difficult times. But let us remember that we can overcome this challenge by collective spirit and action. This pandemic is a challenge where we will all sink or swim together. There is no room for one-upmanship because nobody is safe from COVID-19, until each one of us is safe. Together, through our whole of society and whole of government approach, we will be able to overcome these difficult times and defeat this pandemic comprehensively. Till such time, it is important that we continue to support each other and remain alert. I will be happy to reply to any queries or questions you may have. Please write to me for any further clarifications. I conclude by thanking His Highness Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Amir of the State of Kuwait and His Highness Sheikh Mishaal Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Crown Prince and His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, Hon’ble Prime Minister of Kuwait and the Government and the people of the friendly State of Kuwait for their support in this hour of need for India. I know it was a rather long address. Once again I thank you for your participation and let’s all remain in touch. I request all of you to stand up and sing our national anthem together, on this birth anniversary day of Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore. Thank you.