Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) Chairman and Managing Director N Sridhar here on Friday said the management has taken a series of Covid-19 preventive steps and extended medical services to the patients in its area hospitals at a cost of over Rs. 71 crore.
The management set an example for other Public Sector Undertakings in giving priority to employees’ health during pandemic.
The SCCL has been spending crores of rupees for Covid prevention and medical services to employees and their family members since the beginning of Covid-19 outbreak. Giving more importance to the lives of employees and their family members, it conducted more than 1.27 lakh rapid antigen and RTPCR tests and administered vaccines to 27,000 employees including retired employees and their family members.
Special wards with over 1,400 beds were established in area hospitals and extended emergency medical services in Hyderabad and other empanelled hospitals apart from procuring emergency medicines and oxygen cylinders.
The Singareni has established oxygen plants at five places. As many as 1.25 lakh rapid test kits were purchased at a cost of Rs.3.16 crore. As part of its measures to control the spread of Covid, the Singareni has conducted a maximum number of tests and isolated people who had been affected with Covid.
Of the total 99,406 people who underwent tests, 12,308 were tested positive in Singareni till now. While 9,938 people were recovered completely, over 2,267 persons are undergoing treatment.
Sridhar said the total workers of Singareni are 44,000. Of them, only 783 employees are tested positive while remaining positive cases pertained to workers families and contract employees.
The management has spent about Rs.38 crore on providing specialized medical services to employees whose condition is serious by shifting to corporate hospitals in Hyderabad. Of the active cases in Singareni, 42 are being treated at corporate hospitals in Hyderabad.
According to Sridhar, separate Covid wards were established at a cost of Rs. 43 lakh and provided kits containing 18 varieties of commodities including medicines and pulse oxymeters for those undergoing treatment at quarantine centres and at home.
Remdesivir injections, Favipiravir tablets and other medicines, which are required for the hospitals across Singareni, were purchased at a cost of Rs 5.55 crore. Oxygen cylinders were also arranged at a cost of Rs. 1.28 crore apart from appointing additional medical staff.
The company has paid ex gratia of Rs. 15 lakh to each bereaved family member of the employees who passed away due to Covid-19.
