450-BED HOSPITAL IN LKO SOON, DRDO CHAIRMAN ASSURES RAJNATH
LUCKNOW: The chairman of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) assured union defence minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday that a 450-bed hospital would soon be made operational in Lucknow for Covid -19 patients.
Rajnath presided over a virtual meeting to review preparedness of the ministry of defence and armed forces to fight Covid-19 across the country. Singh, who is also Lucknow MP, urged defence public sector undertakings, ordnance factory board and DRDO to work on a war footing to provide oxygen cylinders and extra beds,
LUCKNOW: The chairman of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) assured union defence minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday that a 450-bed hospital would soon be made operational in Lucknow for Covid -19 patients.
Rajnath presided over a virtual meeting to review preparedness of the ministry of defence and armed forces to fight Covid-19 across the country.
Singh, who is also Lucknow MP, urged defence public sector undertakings, ordnance factory board and DRDO to work on a war footing to provide oxygen cylinders and extra beds to civil administration/state governments at the earliest.
Also present at the meeting, DRDO chairman Dr G Satheesh Reddy apprised the defence minister about the ongoing efforts to set-up a 450-bed hospital in Lucknow for Covid patients.
A 750-bed Covid hospital in Varanasi and a 900-bed in Ahmedabad would also be made operational soon, apprised the DRDO chairman.
The defence minister was also informed that based on the On-board oxygen generation technology developed for the LCA Tejas, a 1000 litre/minute capacity oxygen generation plant technology had been given to industry and the Uttar Pradesh government had placed order for five such plants with the industry.
The DRDO chairman also assured the defence minister that more plants could be supplied by the industry to cater to hospital requirements.
He added that SpO2 (blood oxygen saturation)-based supplemental oxygen delivery system developed for soldiers posted at extreme high-altitude areas could be used for Covid patients as their conditions became similar.
Dr Reddy assured Singh that the product would be available soon in the market from the industry as per technology provided by the DRDO.
During the meeting, Singh also suggested to utilise the services of vaccinated retired armed forces personnel to assist the civil administration/state governments to deal with the Covid situation.
Singh also discussed ways to contain the spread of Covid-19 among armed forces personnel and officers/staff working in the ministry of defence.