India’s fight against COVID-19: Corporate giants as well as startups step up for a common goal

Starting April mid-week in 2021, the second wave of COVID-19 invaded India, and its effect was much graver this time. Mutated versions of COVID and low medical supplies to deal with the health emergency threw people in unwelcoming and unfathomable scenarios. Desperate for help, people found comfort in each other for sharing resources. Taking matters into their own hands, many private companies stepped up to ensure resource availability for their employees and their family members. Some brands also came forward to donate and set up make-shift health facilities to help people in distress. Let’s look at various ways through which brands have helped the nation fight COVID-19.

Aids & Donations

Big names such as Tata Sons, Tata Trusts, WIPRO, Infosys, Hero Cycles, Adani Foundation, JSW Group, and more have contributed a large sum of money. Together Tata Sons and Tata Trusts have donated a sum of Rs 1500 crore, WIPRO has donated 1125 crores, while many others have given approx. Rs 100 crores each. Tata Son’s Chairman N Chandrasekaran said in a statement, “Tata Trusts’ contribution of Rs 500 crore will be used to manufacture personal protective equipment, respiratory systems, testing kits, setting up modular treatment facilities and training of health workers.” Such large firms will surely empower concerned organizations to make necessary arrangements.

While some brands came out to support the nation or the government with financial aid, some brands offered services free of cost to ensure resource availability. For example, a Delhi/NCR based movers and packers aggregator Shift Freight worked closely with governments to ensure timely delivery of medical supplies like oxygen concentrators free of cost. The company claims to have undertaken multiple delivery requests wherein each delivery costs more than Rs 50,000 to the firm. The company also provided all necessary safety guards for their on-duty staff with proper dresses, shoes, PPE kits free of cost, in addition to mask, shield, gloves, shoe cover, and sanitisers. Shift Freight co-founder Avinash Raghav says, “Thanks to our wide network of partners across the country, we succeeded in shifting life-saving equipment like oxygen cylinders and concentrators to distant remote geographical locations without any delay and free of cost. We feel privileged to be of any service to people in the prevailing crises.”

Vaccination drive, insurance policy and oxygen supplies

One of the most potent weapons against the COVID-19 virus is vaccination. Many companies tied up with health service providers to ensure the vaccination of their employees. India based no-code app development company Appy Pie was among the first such firms to embrace vaccination drive for their employees. The startup’s founder Abhinav Girdhar said, “While India was still getting over Covid’s first wave, many other nations were already going through the second wave. This made us realize that the worst wasn’t over yet, and therefore we wanted to ensure the safety of our employees at any cost.” The company is sponsoring the COVID vaccine for all staff member under its company insurance. Similarly, other companies such as Ernst & Young.

NovelVox, a leading contact centre solution company, also upgraded its employees’ medical insurance policies. The firm has rolled out a comprehensive COVID Policy, under which the employees can claim reimbursement for the amount spent to fight against COVID. Also, the company was quick to procure oxygen concentrators, which their employees are borrowing in case of need and without any charges. Amit Kumar Gandhi, founder of NovelVox says, “Companies expect a lot from employees to achieve their goals, but this is the time when companies need to step up and ensure the safety of their employees, and that’s exactly what we did. It is a social responsibility of companies, irrespective of scale, to take care of their employees in such tough times.”