Initially, 1,000 tests per day were conducted, which necessitated a 100x growth rate; now the count has increased to one million tests per day, and so the growth rate required is not that much. One of the big reasons is that we got the initial impetus on testing and there was a lot of focus to ensure that tests are happening regularly; now that focus on increasing the testing infrastructure has, to some extent, reduced.
M.K. Padma Kumar is involved in developing strategies and managing operations for the IPE Global Group.
He has over 25 years of experience in the development sector, working in civil society organisations and international development agencies like DANIDA and DFID. As the Head of State Partnerships at the DFID India, he was responsible for developing partnerships, programme design, management and strategic oversight of all programmes implemented in Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha. He has managed various development programmes. His expertise lies in driving operational, financial and programmatic transformations. Before DFID, he was associated with Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA), Help Age and World Wildlife Fund.
He holds a Master’s degree in Business Management with specialisation in Human Resource Management and Finance. He is extensively trained in Project Cycle Management, Grant Management, Performance Management, Leadership Skills and Change Management.