Local electronics manufacturer -- Minister Hi-Tech Park Ltd -- has designed a ventilator and necessary medical equipment for the treatment of Covid-19 patients, and will send those to two private medical colleges in the capital for pre-testing.

The ventilators will be tested at the ICU of Universal Medical College Hospital Ltd and Shahabuddin Medical College Hospital, said MA Razzak Khan, founder of MyOne Electronics Ind Ltd and Minister Hi-Tech Park, told The Daily Star today.

"We will send the ventilators by today. After receiving the medical colleges' reports, we will make necessary changes based on their suggestions and submit those to the authorities concerned for approval," said Khan, also a director of Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industries (FBCCI).

Ventilators blow oxygen into the lungs of patients suffering from severe pulmonary stress and are essential for saving the lives of Covid-19 patients.

With the support of Information Communication Technology (ICT) division of the government, Minister Hi-Tech Park Ltd has developed the prototype design, Khan said.

On March 31, State Minister for ICT Zunaid Ahmed Palak received the patent, design and source code of ventilators from Medtronic, an international medical device company, to go for local manufacturing of the medical equipment.

MA Razzak Khan said they are hopeful that their design will be approved by the government within this week and from next week they can go for production.

They are yet to decide on the price of the ventilators but they are concerned about the necessary raw materials sourced from the global market, he said.

"We have the capacity to produce about 100 ventilators a day but it all depends on the raw materials supply," he added.

According to the Directorate General of Health Services, currently Bangladesh has just 1,250 ventilators --  500 in public hospitals and 750 in the private ones -- while it might required thousands more to face the challenges of coronavirus.