International Truck and Engine Corp. has donated a specially-built tractor to the Meenakshi Mission Hospital and Research Centre in Tamil Nadu, India.
The mobile cat scan, formerly owned by Chicago resident Joel Willard, is the first of its kind in India. International’s tractor will tow the scanner from northern Tamil Nadu to the southern tip of the state, traveling more than 300 miles a year to service remote areas of the coastal population.
Representatives from International and the Meenakshi Mission Hospital of India, along with special guests, unveiled the scanner and tractor Saturday, Oct. 22, at the Illinois National Guard North Riverside Armory. After the ceremony, military aircraft flew the scanner and tractor to India.
Direct Relief International, a nonprofit medical relief and health assistance organization that supports disaster relief and community health worldwide, coordinated the event. Direct Relief International has been instrumental in providing support for victims of the tsunami, hurricanes Rita and Katrina and, most recently, the earthquake that impacted both India and Pakistan.
