Supreme Court receives medical equipment to fight spread of COVID-19 |17 July 2020
Indian High Commissioner General Dalbir Singh Suhag hand over a sample of the medical equipment to Chief Justice Twomey in the presence of Mr Pardiwalla (Photo: Thomas Meriton)
A stock of medical equipment which would help in the fight against the spread of COVID-19 was on Wednesday handed over to the Supreme Court of Seychelles.
In the short ceremony that took place at noon in the lobby of the Palais de Justice, Indian High Commissioner to Seychelles, General Dalbir Singh Suhag and the chairman of the Indian Association of Seychelles, Jamshed Pardiwalla jointly presented the medical items to Chief Justice Mathilda Twomey. Also present were other representatives from the Indian High Commission and members of the Indian Association of Seychelles as well as staff of the supreme court.
The medical equipment donated comprise 500 black washable masks, one blood pressure machine, one glucometer and one infrared thermometer. They were among similar medical items procured from India and transported on board the special Air India repatriation flights to Seychelles.
It was the high commission which facilitated the transportation of the items to be used by the staff of the judiciary.
General Suhag said the Indian High Commission and its partners find it appropriate at this time of the COVID-19 pandemic to give out medical items to people in need in the community so that they can protect themselves against the virus. He stated that it was impossible to bring in more of the medical items as flights are limited at the moment.
“So we have gifted what we can as a symbolic gesture for now until more is available,” said High Commissioner Suhag, noting that the high commission will also be making donations of similar medical kits to the Seychelles People’s Defence Forces (SPDF) and the Seychelles police.
Chief Justice Twomey thanked the Indian High Commission and the Indian Association of Seychelles for their noble gesture and said India is one of the judiciary’s great partners and this is evident through the many donations received.
Referring to the numerous members of the public who access the courts on a daily basis to have their cases heard, Justice Twomey noted that the medical equipment will help to consolidate the current screening points put in place to protect both the public and court staff.
“We are increasingly worried about COVID-19 and its impact, both locally and internationally as the airport is set to reopen in August. In light of this, the donation comes at a good time,” she said.
Mr Pardiwalla, for his part, pointed out that the same items have also been donated to the Homes for the Elderly on Praslin and La Digue, through the Ministry of Family Affairs. The Indian Association of Seychelles will be making similar distributions of medical items to the Catholic and Anglican churches, the Hindu temple and the Muslin mosque among other organisations in need of such medical items to fight the spread of COVID-19.
“There is a need at the moment for the community to realise the importance of how to prevent COVID-19 from spreading. We have to be prepared to look after ourselves,” Mr Pardiwalla said.
He further added that it is for these reasons that the Indian Association of Seychelles along with the Indian High Commission are initiating the distribution of these medical equipment to help the community in the fight against the virus.
Patrick Joubert