Agartala, Jan 16 (UNI) United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has agreed to set up oxygen-producing plants in seven district hospitals of Tripura and state referral hospital here at Indira Gandhi Memorial (IGM) hospital, which is expected to be operational by March this year, said MLA and Chairman of Patient Welfare Society Dr Dilip Das.
According to the report, no hospital in Tripura including Agartala Govt Medical College (AGMC) has modern oxygen-producing units, as a result, hospitals are solely dependent on the oxygen cylinders coming from a private plant. An oxygen plant was set up about 15 years ago in AGMC but it’s almost dead now and during Covid-19 interruption in oxygen supply to the critical Covid patients had uproar in the hospital.
“There was a report of repeated sudden fall of oxygen pressure and disruption in the supply line that allegedly caused the death of over 73 Covid patients in Covid hospital at AGMC. The oxygen supply was disrupted for more than an hour when about 240 critical patients were put on life support systems on Sept 11 night last year. However, the situation was somehow managed through a private party by the former health minister and MLA Sudip Roybarman,” said a senior official of the state health department.
He also pointed out that the existing oxygen plant at AGMC is not sufficient to cater to the need of daily requirement and AGMC demand has been supplemented from a private supply. After chaos during Covid and claims of patient death due to insufficient supply of oxygen in AGMC, the state government has decided to set up a modern and high capacity oxygen-producing unit in the hospital but yet to finalise the process.
Meantime, UNDP has agreed to set up oxygen plants in all the district hospitals of the state including IGM following persuasions of the state government.
An expert team of UNDP and implementing agency have visited the sites and announced to finish the project by the next three months. The hospital authorities were asked to earmark the locations for setting up the plant and to proceed for laying pipelines and cylinder bottling facilities, the official added.
The MLA Dr Das, however, stated that there was an acute shortage of oxygen in Tripura and response to the state government, UNDP has agreed to fund for setting up of oxygen plants in IGM and seven other district hospitals.
In IGM, UNDP would be funding for 1,050 litres per minute size plant which would produce around 220 cylinders in 24 hours, Das pointed out.
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