Delhi airport handled 25 flights carrying 300 tonnes of COVID relief cargo in last 5 days

The Delhi international airport handled 25 flights carrying 300 tonnes of COVID-19 relief cargo in the last five days, its operator, DIAL, said on Monday. The airport has set up a 3,500 square metre dedicated logistics facility, called 'Jeevoday warehouse', for interim storage and distribution of the relief materials, the Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) said in a statement.

India is struggling with the second wave of the coronavirus infection as hospitals in several states are reeling under a severe shortage of drugs, oxygen and beds.

"In a span of just 5 days - April 28 to May 2 - Delhi airport has handled around 25 COVID relief flights totalling around 300 tonnes cargo, originating from various countries like the US, United Kingdom, UAE, Uzbekistan, Thailand, Germany, Qatar, Hong Kong, China etc," the statement noted.


Most of the relief flights were conducted by Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft such as IL76, C-130, C-5, C-17, it said.

These flights brought in over 5,500 oxygen concentrators, approximately 3,200 oxygen cylinders, over 9,28,000 masks, 1,36,000 remdesivir injections, which are required in view of a massive surge in COVID-19 cases in the country, the statement noted.

The daily COVID-19 cases in India showed a slight dip on Monday, with 3,68,147 new infections being reported in a span of 24 hours. The total caseload in the country stands at 1,99,25,604, according to the Union Health Ministry.

The death toll due to the disease increased to 2,18,959 with 3,417 more fatalities being reported in a day, it stated.