Delhi government requests Railways for Covid care coaches

NEW DELHI:  With government and private facilities struggling to cope up with soaring Covid-19 cases, the Delhi government wrote to the Indian Railways on Sunday requesting it to provide train coaches to arrange bed facilities for patients at Anand Vihar and Shakur Basti stations. 

“As of now, the facilities at government and private hospitals available are getting strained and there is an urgent need for more number of Covid bed facilities to cope up with the ever-increasing demand of Covid-19 patients who require admissions in hospitals,” Delhi chief secretary Vijay Dev on Sunday wrote to Railway Board chief Suneet Sharma.

Responding to the request, Union Minister of Railways Piyush Goyal stated that some beds have already been arranged. “Government under PM Narendra Modi leading the fight against Covid-19: 50 Covid-19 isolation coaches with 800 beds ready at Shakur Basti station and 25 coaches will be available at Anand Vihar station in Delhi,” informed Goyal through a tweet. 

Like last year, the Delhi government has once again made arrangements in Yamuna Sports Complex and Commonwealth Games Complex. The country’s largest Covid care facility at Radha Soami Satsang Beas Centre has also been revived. Beds are also being set up in many schools that are being attached to hospitals. According to the Delhi government, given the rate that the infection is spreading, there will be a shortage of beds in the next two-three days in the national capital.

Meanwhile, the chief minister held meetings with three MCD commissioners and mayors asking them to join forces with the government and help in providing more beds, manpower and medical infrastructure. Kejriwal, in the virtual meeting, said that the government is not looking at isolation beds and the need is for oxygen beds. He asked the mayors and commissioners to volunteer services, beds and that government will give whatever else they required. AAP government will provide material like PPE kits, oxygen cylinders.

“Our priority right now is to increase beds. So, if you can increase the number of beds that you are right now making available, that would also be of immense help” said Kejriwal in a meeting attended by North Delhi Municipal Corporation’s, Standing Committee chairperson and BJP leader Jai Prakash along with others. The BJP-led civic bodies and AAP government have been vehemently attacking each other over the last few years with Kejriwal calling MCDs the ‘Most Corrupt Department’.