From zero manufacturers in March this year, as many as 1,100 indigenous manufacturers of PPE kits have been developed by the government till date and most of them are from the MSME sector. In a written reply to the Lok Sabha, Textiles Minister Smriti Irani said, the capacity and production of PPE coveralls for COVID-19 touched a peak of 5 lakh per day in mid-May 2020.
As on September 13, a total of 1.42 crore PPE kits have been supplied to HLL Lifecare Ltd, the procurement arm of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, for the use of health professionals in government hospitals.
Similarly, domestic manufacturers of N-95 masks were encouraged during the lockdown period and as a result, a total of 2.46 crore N-95 masks have been supplied to HLL Lifecare Ltd as on 13th September.
In a separate reply, the Minister said that from 28th July to 24th August, the exports of PPE coveralls were allowed under quantity restriction limited to 50 lakh per month.