The Andhra Pradesh Health Department has signed an agreement with a private company to supply medicines to tribal area hospitals via drones, with Paderu as the central hub. The services will commence from the end of next month.
BY RAJA PENTAPATI
AP BUREAU CHIEF
NATIONAL NEWSAmaravati, December 24 (Bharat News) AP
The Andhra Pradesh government, with the aim of extending essential medical services to remote tribal areas, has entered into a crucial agreement with the “Redwing” organization. This agreement facilitates the distribution of medicines and blood units to hospitals in remote areas via drones, centered in Paderu, Alluri Sitarama Raju district.
The organization, which is already successfully providing services in Arunachal Pradesh, has agreed to provide services free of charge for the first 6-7 months in the state under a ‘Proof of Concept’ initiative.
The Medical and Health Department stated in a press release that this agreement was signed between the State Health and Family Welfare Department Commissioner, Veerapandiyan, and the organization’s representative, Kundan Madireddy.
With Paderu as the main hub, drone services will be available to primary and community health centers within a radius of 60 to 80 kilometers. These drones will also have a cold chain facility to prevent damage to medicines and vaccines. Each drone has the capacity to carry approximately 2 kilograms of weight.
These drones will not only carry medicines but will also bring back blood, stool, and urine samples collected from patients for testing at the labs. Commissioner Veerapandian stated that these services will commence from the end of next month.
Soon from KGH to Paderu Sending medicines to tribal hilly areas via road is a time-consuming process. The coalition government has focused on using drones with the aim of saving lives in emergency situations. The government also plans to extend these services in the future for transporting medicines from Visakhapatnam KGH to Paderu.
Bharat News Andhra Pradesh
