The Deshpande Foundation and its partner organizations have joined others in going virtual in response to the Covid-19 pandemic sweeping the globe. The Deshpande Foundation in India held productive discussions with local administrative authorities including the District Commissioner, the Police Commissioner, Zilla Panchayat CEO, Hubballi-Dharwad Municipal Corporation Commissioner, and the District Health officer about harnessing the resources of the Foundation to support their efforts in managing the Covid-19 crisis. In addition, the Foundation has:
- Donated 1000 face shields to front line workers manufactured by Printlyx, a Deshpande Startup
- Donated 15,000 masks manufactured by Nayodyami micro-entrepreneurs to the Government of Karnataka
- Worked in communities to distribute food and groceries in neighborhoods as well as encouraging use of the Arogya Setu app for Covid monitoring
- Partnered with Deshpande Startup incubatees, Boonbox and freshboxx to deliver essential food and vegetables to urban and rural populations
- Supported health workers and administrators with an online dashboard to track corona cases that was developed by Deshpande Startups LinkEZ and DocketRun
