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Business soaring in India due to SARS
Monday, 05 May 2003, 19:30 IST
NEW DELHI: One Indian industry is not complaining about SARS. With hundreds of thousands of people in Asian countries scrambling to cover their faces with masks to escape the killer virus, the cash registers of facemask makers here are ringing louder than ever.
Exports of facemasks from India to Asian countries hit hard by SARS are soaring. The disease has killed over 400 people worldwide, mainly in China.
Global Products, a New Delhi firm that exports surgical and other medical equipments, says Asian sales of its facemasks have soared fivefold since the SARS threat emerged.
"We have seen an increased demand for masks in our regular exports markets like Malaysia, Hong Kong, Singapore and Vietnam," Vikas Narang, director (exports) of Global Products, told IANS.
"Though we don't have an existing export base in China, we are getting lots of inquiries from there. Our export of masks has gone up by at least four to five times over the previous year."
Since SARS first erupted in China in November, and the first cases were observed in countries such as Singapore and Hong Kong in March, the disease has spread rapidly around the world, claiming victims as far away as in Canada.
China has the highest number of cases, followed by Hong Kong and Singapore.
In all these countries, the fear of SARS has prompted people to mask their faces so that they do not catch the virus.
Many Western countries are also stockpiling masks and other protective equipments fearing the SARS virus may spread to their territory.
This has translated into a marketing bonanza for medical equipments makers in India.
Companies say they are working overtime to produce World Health Organisation guidelines' compliant surgical masks that sit closely against the face and are made to demanding standards for filtering the air of microscopic particles.
"The main problem we are facing now is that some of these importing countries are placing huge orders for masks only on the condition that the consignment would be delivered overnight," Praveen Sachdeva, of the Hospital Equipment Manufacturing, told IANS.
"Since we outsource these equipments from firms located in different parts of the country, it is becoming very difficult for to us to meet these tough deadlines," Sachdeva added.
Agrees Sudhir Narang, one of the promoters of Apothecaries Sundries Manufacturing Company, a surgical equipments exporter.
"Our export of masks to China, Hong Kong and Singapore has increased manifold. New orders are pouring in every day. We never anticipated this kind of demand for masks made here."
Industry sources say medical equipments maker in New Delhi alone have exported facemasks worth over 
2 billion in the last one month.
"What is helping Indian companies is the shortage of masks in all major hospital equipment making countries around the world," said one industry official.
"While many countries are struggling to meet an expected surge in domestic demand, India is relatively secured on that front and therefore can meet the rise in global demand.
"Secondly, the Indian companies are very successfully competing with global majors on the price front. Surgical masks made in Western countries are at least five to ten times costlier than those made here."
Source: IANS
2 billion in the last one month.
"What is helping Indian companies is the shortage of masks in all major hospital equipment making countries around the world," said one industry official.
"While many countries are struggling to meet an expected surge in domestic demand, India is relatively secured on that front and therefore can meet the rise in global demand.
"Secondly, the Indian companies are very successfully competing with global majors on the price front. Surgical masks made in Western countries are at least five to ten times costlier than those made here."
Source: IANS