Deloitte global CEO Punit Renjen sends crisis support for India
Punit Renjen, the Indian-origin global CEO at Big Four accounting and advisory firm Deloitte, is rallying private and public sector agents in the US to help India – in whatever way possible – to emerge from dire circumstances.
A second Covid-19 wave has gripped India with catastrophic effect – exhausting hospital capacity, oxygen supplies and medication, among other crucial supplies. Millions of new cases are reported each week, and the death toll has crossed 200,000 since the outbreak of the pandemic.
Deloitte global CEO Punit Renjen was born in Rohtak, Haryana, and – much like the rest of the world – is watching with horror as the crisis worsens in India. “The images from my homeland have pained us all,” he said, in a LinkedIn post.
“My thoughts are for my mother and family in Haryana and my professional family of over 50,000 Deloitte India colleagues, many of whom have been impacted by the pandemic’s frightening spiral.” Renjen’s response has been to mobilise US businesses with means to support India’s collapsing medical infrastructure.
“I’ve spent the weekend working with the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum, the U.S.-India Business Council, the Business Roundtable and India’s Ambassador to the US to mobilize resources. More than forty CEOs of multinational companies came together this weekend to focus on immediate needs like oxygen concentrators, oxygen cylinders and generators, home monitoring kits and critical medicines.”
According to him, Deloitte has supplied 1,000 oxygen concentrators to India, while another 11,000 from other businesses in the US will arrive by the end of the week. And efforts will continue, Renjen plans to liase with other CEOs to “advocating for further support from both government and the private sector,” in days to come.
“The way to fight it is to respond together against a virus that doesn’t discriminate against anyone. This is a global crisis and we know that nobody is safe till everyone is safe,” said Renjen.
Aid is flowing in from multiple sources. Google and Microsoft CEOs Sundar Pichai and Satya Nadella – both of Indian origin – have also pledged support for India, while international support is arriving from the UK, the EU, and neighbouring Pakistan. In the US, infectious diseases expert Anthony Fauci has hinted at the possibility of sending surplus vaccines to India.
Indian businesses have been contributing as well. PwC offered monetary support for its staff, while a group of IT majors committed to cover vaccination costs for their entire India headcount and their families – amounting to millions of doses.