With Prime Minister Narendra Modi stating that a Covid vaccine could be ready in a few weeks, air cargo services at Delhi and Hyderabad airports are set to play a pivotal role in its distribution through sensitive next-generation distribution systems. to time and temperature. .
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According to Delhi Airport, it has two cargo terminals with world-class infrastructure that provides a GDP (Good Distribution Practices) certified temperature controlled facility for handling temperature sensitive cargo.
With the capacity to handle more than 1.5 lakh metric tons of cargo per year, the Delhi airport facility has state-of-the-art temperature control zones with separate cold rooms ranging from -20 degrees to 25 degrees Celsius, which which would be extremely conducive to the distribution of Covid-19 vaccines.
Delhi airport authorities said that in addition to the cooling chamber, it also has air-side “cooling pads” that ensure an uninterrupted cooling chain during the movement of temperature-sensitive cargo between the terminal and the aircraft.
“The terminals have separate doors dedicated to the rapid movement of vehicles that transport vaccines in and out of the airport. In accordance with the vision of the Ministry of Civil Aviation to create metropolitan airports as transshipment hubs, Delhi Airport has established a dedicated Transshipment Center of Excellence, spread over an area of 6,500 square meters on the air side that will assist in the rapid movement of vaccines through transshipment. ”Stated a Delhi airport spokesperson.
The Delhi Airport QR code-based e-Gate Pass facility will provide an automated process for paper documentation and reduce the human interface, speeding up the movement of imported vaccine deliveries.
In particular, in the recent past, the Delhi airport had acted as a hub for distributing millions of PPE kits across the country.
Meanwhile, GMR Hyderabad Air Cargo (GHAC), located in the center of one of the vaccine production regions in the country, is also a key player in global vaccine logistics with facilities such as modern temperature-sensitive pharmacies and zones storage and processing of vaccines. .
“GMR Hyderabad Air Cargo boasts of having the first Pharmaceutical Zone in India with a GDP certified temperature controlled facility for handling temperature sensitive cargo. The terminal is equipped with various temperature zones from -20 degrees Celsius to 25 degrees Celsius and with state-of-the-art equipment and cold containers to meet specific product requirements, ”said a Hyderabad airport spokesman.
Read also | The Covid vaccine will be in India in a few weeks: PM Modi
The spokesperson stated that the cargo parking stalls are only 50 m from the terminal, which minimizes the exposure time of the ramp and ensures a quick turn of the aircraft.
The airport also recently launched the latest dollies to eliminate temperature fluctuations and keep the cold chain uninterrupted.
GHAC also boasts of having one of the largest warehousing facilities in India for cold containers such as envirotainer, c-safe, unicooler and vaqtainer within its premises to make sure the service is available to customers 24×7.
The GHAC has also taken various paperless initiatives such as electronic reception, e-OOC, e-LEO, e-AWB among others to minimize the human interface.
During the Covid, the GHAC operated 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to provide an unhindered air cargo service delivering medical and perishable supplies to frontline warriors.
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