The government had earlier announced a relief package of Rs 1.7 lakh crore to help citizens most affected by the novel coronavirus outbreak. (Photo: Reuters)

The government on Thursday sanctioned Rs 15,000 crore to strengthen the fight against the Covid-19 virus.

The amount has been released towards the 'India Covid-19 Emergency Response and Health System Preparedness Package'.

Out of the total amount, Rs 7,774 crore will be used for emergency response and the rest will be sued for medium-term support for a period of 1-4 years. It will be provided under a "mission-mode" approach.

The key objective of the package is to fund dedicated treatment facilities, centralised procurement of essential medical equipment, and drugs required for treatment of infected patients.

"These interventions and initiatives would be implemented under the overall umbrella of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. This will allow for rapidly ramping up the number of coronavirus testing facilities, Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), Isolation Beds, ICU beds, ventilators and other essential equipment," the government release said.

The emergency amount will also be used to train medical and paramedical manpower at a time when India needs more medical professionals in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

"The major share of the expenditure will be used for mounting robust emergency response, strengthening national and state health systems followed by strengthening pandemic research and multi-sector national institutions and platforms," it added.

The government had earlier announced a relief package of Rs 1.7 lakh crore to help citizens most affected by the novel coronavirus outbreak. Meanwhile, India has also started rigorous testing and a total of 223 labs are engaged in the process.

As of Wednesday, data on health ministry’s website puts India’s Covid-19 tally at 5,865 with 169 deaths and 478 recoveries.