PM Imran inaugurates NRTC's ventilator production facility at Haripur

HARIPUR: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday visited the National Radio and Telecommunication Corporation (NRTC) to inaugurate a production facility that manufactures Pakistan's first-ever indigenously-developed ventilators. 

PM Imran was accompanied by Science and Technology Minister Fawad Chaudhry, Energy Minister Omar Ayub, Focal Person on Coronavirus Dr Faisal Sultan, National Disaster Management Authority Chairperson Lt Gen Muhammad Afzal, and other senior officers.

On the occasion, the premier "commended the initiative taken by NRTC and the Ministry of Science & Technology for the first ever indigenously produced ventilator", according to an update from the Prime Minister's Office on Twitter.

Terming it "a landmark achievement" for Pakistan, he congratulated the entire team.

PM Imran emphasized that Pakistan has abundant talent to take the country to self-reliance in new technological innovation and the PTI-led government would strongly support any initiative to harness the youth's potential.

"Our approach in response to [the coronavirus] pandemic and adopting smart lockdown while keeping the economy afloat has been widely acknowledged," he noted.

"Our focus will now remain on comprehensive health reforms," he added.

On the other hand, NRTC Managing Director Brig Tofique Ahmed gave a detailed briefing to PM Imran about the corporation's history, sectors of research and development, and products and services.

"The NRTC is indigenously providing services including communication equipment, e-policing, electro-medical equipment, [and] hardware and software," Ahmed said.

According to a previous post from the PM Office, the NRTC has "started local manufacturing of portable ventilators named 'SafeVent SP100'”.

"SafeVent SP 100 is FDA/CE approved economical and reliable ventilator. NRTC has already produced 15 units of SafeVent SP 100 and has a production capacity to manufacture 250 – 300 units per month," the PM Office added.

The current production capacity would provide the much-needed comfort to Pakistan as it deals with an uptick in the coronavirus cases.