New Delhi, May 1 (IANS): In a bid to safeguard sanitation workers from contracting COVID-19 and reduce the consumption of the PPE kits, the New Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) is all set to begin the use of Robotic Ultra Violet Machine (RUVM) for sanitisation of closed spaces like hospitals.

"NDMC received a Robotic Ultra Violet Machine for sanitisation and disinfection work. It will work remotely through an app with a range of 200 meters to use in sanitisation work in hospital and closed offices. It could also be used in sterilizing rooms and equipment in minutes," the civic body said in a statement.

The UV machine is an innovation by a team of a startup Engineers - Avishkar and can also be used in sterilizing the PPE kits. "It will emit radiations to sterilise PPE kits to make them reusable. The reuse of PPEs will stop a lot of biomedical waste generation," the statement said.

The machine has a capacity to disinfect an area of up to 12,000 square feet per hour. It costs around Rs 50 thousand whereas outside India, it costs around Rs 7-8 lakh.

While NDMC received 25 Spray Machines from Super LPG Pvt. Ltd. as donation under their corporate social responsibility (CSR ) activities, BJP MP Meenakshi Lekhi distributed 50 PPE kits to NDMC sanitisation workers and 'safai sevaks'.

Lekhi applauded the spirit and hard work of all sanitation workers of the civic body during this lockdown period and said that PPE kits provided to the NDMC would be used by sanitisation staff of NDMC in various hotspot areas. These PPE kits would certainly enhance their protection and efficiency in sanitising the area by essential daily drive of NDMC to contain Covid-19, she added.