O2 demand up 30%, state stares at crisis
CHANDIGARH: With a sharp spike in Covid-19 cases in the past two weeks, Punjab is on the verge of an oxygen crisis.
The rising trajectory of coronavirus cases has led to a jump of more than 30% in demand of the life-saving resource, depleting its oxygen reserve to an alltime low of 10 to 12 hours during the devastating second wave of the pandemic.
The oxygen allocation, which stands at 227 metric tonne (MT), has failed to keep pace with the rising demand despite repeated requests to the central government which has been flooded with similar requests from other states as the number of new infections is also at an all-time high in the country.
Ashwani Kumar urges PM to raise supply to Punjab
Former Union minister for law and justice Ashwani Kumar has called upon Prime Minister Narendra Modi for assistance to Punjab in the fight against Covid-19, urging that the availability of oxygen and vaccine doses in the state be ramped up urgently.
“Considering the particular vulnerabilities of Punjab, an aggressive vaccination drive and adequate supply of oxygen for the seriously ill patients is a compelling need of the state,” Kumar wrote in a letter to the Prime Minister.
“As regards the availability of oxygen, the present demand of the state is 280 MT per day as
against the availability of about 150 MT. This demand could increase substantially in the days ahead considering the obvious possibilities, for which it is necessary to keep a reasonable buffer,” he added in the letter dated May 8.
“The doses required for vaccination of persons between the age group of 18 to 44 is 2.6 crore for which orders have been placed by the state government.
Out of this, 30 lakh doses are required by May 21 but the supplies may not match this demand unless ensured by the central government. Similarly, for vaccination of those at 45 and above, 1.6 crore doses are required for double dose vaccination against which only 40.50 lakh doses have been received by the state government through govt. of India,” Kumar wrote.
Even chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh, who has repeatedly requested the central government to increase its oxygen allocation, on Sunday again urged the PM to increase Punjab’s oxygen quota to 300 MT in view of the growing caseload of critically ill coronavirus patients.
State asks Centre to resolve logistical issues
The state government has also called immediate attention to the need for immediate resolution of logistical issues, tankers and IAF sorties and for lifting the allocated Bokaro stock. “We have increased the number of tankers to Bokaro from two to four, but need more as turnaround time is four days,” said Ajoy Sharma, in-charge of Punjab’s Covid control room.
The state team, which has requested for at least two sorties daily, held a virtual meeting on Sunday morning with IAF officials to review the situation and is also trying to explore train options. Also, the Centre has been requested to make oxygen allocation to the state from nearby sources and not from far off states.