Urge Biden-Harris administration to send surplus vaccine stock to India to beat devastating surge.
Leading Indian American community organizations have thanked the Biden-Harris administration for helping India hit by a devastating Covid-19 surge and urged it to send it surplus US vaccine to beat the pandemic.
“We applaud the decision by the White House to donate the US government’s 60 million surplus vaccine doses to fight the pandemic globally,” Neil Makhija, Executive Director of IMPACT, stated.
“We urge the White House to send at least half of our vaccine surplus stockpiles to India, where half of the world’s new infections are currently happening,” he wrote.
Noting that the deadliest wave of Covid-19 is currently emerging in India with nearly 350,000 new cases daily, Makhija said, “This heartbreaking tragedy must be met with swift action from allies across the globe led by the United States.”
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IMPACT also thanked “the South Asian members of Congress and our allies — such as Reps. Raja Krishnamoorthi, Pramila Jayapal, Ro Khanna, and Andy Kim — for being the leading voices in the fight to help India.”
“But Congress and the White House still need to hear our collective voices to make sure the surplus vaccines are donated to India, where they are needed most,” Makhija stated.
The current surge in India will prolong the global crisis without a swift global response, he said. “This massive humanitarian crisis cannot be met with charitable efforts alone, and requires leveraging the resources of the US Government.”
IMPACT also asked people to add their names to call on President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to send a majority of the US vaccine surplus to fight against the Covid-19 crisis in India.
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The Global Organization of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) has also thanked Biden for his announcement of the US sending raw materials for Covid-19 vaccines, medical equipment and protective gear to help India respond to a massive surge in coronavirus infections.
GOPIO Chairman Dr. Thomas Abraham said that in the last three months, India acted as a global leader in sending vaccines to many countries.
However, with the sudden unexpected Covid-19 outbreak, India needs an enormous quantity of vaccines for its 1.3 billion population. “As a close ally of India, our country must help India in this grave situation.” he said.
“We appeal to you to send AstraZeneca vaccines which are stored by US manufacturers in their warehouses since the US is yet to authorize its use here while it has been used in India,” Dr. Abraham appealed in a letter to Biden.
GOPIO also requested Biden to facilitate manufacturing of other vaccines in India so that the global demand can be met sooner.
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