The Startup Incubation and Innovation Centre at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) on Thursday said it has raised funding from ICICI Securities for its Mission Bharat O2 to support domestic manufacturing of oxygen concentrators.
Through a three-pronged approach – rapid product development, centralized sourcing, and decentralized manufacturing – the project aims to deliver 20,000 high-quality oxygen concentrators and oxygen plants for India's emergency response to the Covid-19 pandemic, the institute said.
Cost of these concentrators will be at least 40 per cent lower than imported ones, it added.
SIIC has already selected eight manufacturing partners from over 70 participants who competed to manufacture this indigenous oxygen plant and oxygen concentrators. It aims to achieve a daily run rate of 100 units per manufacturer per day.
Prof Amitabha Bandyopadhyay, Professor In-charge for Innovation and Incubation said: "The SIIC team at IIT Kanpur aims to turn the country into a manufacturing hub by supporting cutting-edge research and development.”
“Our incubated companies have contributed immensely since COVID-19 struck India. We want to go a step further to build a nexus of local manufacturers who will put India on the map of the global manufacturing hubs. The support from ICICI Securities is a much-needed contribution in that direction," Prof Bandyopadhyay added.
“Providing timely and affordable healthcare facilities is a pressing need...we are inspired by their vision to make India a self-reliant nation in life-saving medical equipment by bringing together various players for a larger social cause,” said Vijay Chandok, MD and CEO, ICICI Securities.
