COVID-19: Defence Ministry urges Armed Forces veteran doctors to provide teleconsulting

As the Government of India deploys all its resources to contain the devastating second wave of COVID-19, the Defence Ministry has urged the veteran officers of Armed Forces Medical Services (AFMS) to offer teleconsultation to citizens amid the pandemic crisis.

A statement from the Defence Ministry said, "The veterans constitute a large group of the Armed Forces Family who have served the nation with honour and dignity. They are motivated highly trained professionals who still have a lot to offer for a national cause."

"Hence all Veteran Officers of Armed Forces Medical Services are requested to register themselves on the e-Sehat Portal wherein they can offer their guidance, counselling and advice to many of their fellow countrymen and help provide succour in this hour of need," the statement added.

COVID-19 situation in India

The Indian Armed Forces and the railways have also been roped in by the union government to combat the COVID-19 crisis. While the Armed Forces have also been providing logistics support in transporting oxygen containers from abroad as well as within the country between places of consumption and production, the Railways is also running Oxygen Express trains to supply oxygen to different states grappling with the acute shortage of oxygen. The oxygen manufacturers have been directed to ramp up medical oxygen production in order to cater to the increasing demand of the country amid the pandemic.

Coronavirus cases in India hit a record daily high with over 4 lakh new infections being reported in the last 24 hours, while the active cases crossed the 32-lakh mark, according to the latest update by the Union Health Ministry on Saturday. The infection tally rose to 1,91,64,969 with 4,01,993 new cases, while the death toll increased to 2,11,853 with 3,523 daily new fatalities. The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 1,56,84,406, while the case fatality rate stands 1.11 per cent, the data stated. States reporting a high number of fresh COVID-19 cases include Maharashtra with 62,919 infections, followed by Karnataka with 48,296, and Kerala that reported 37,199 in the past 24 hours.

Meanwhile, support is pouring in from around 40 nations across the world including all major powers like the US, Russia, Japan, France, Germany, and the UK who have announced medical supplies and assistance to help India deal with the second wave of the Coronavirus pandemic.