Call for audit of oxygen use by guzzler states

BENGALURU: Caught in the middle of an acute oxygen shortage caused by an unprecedented demand from hospitals, industry sources said the situation has become grim also because many states with oxygen plants are not allowing the gas to go out of their states. The Centre has mapped the requirement of all states which is being closely monitored at district level. 

“All states should adhere to the Central guidelines. The Ministry of Home Affairs has instructed that there should be unhindered movement of oxygen tankers inter- and intra-state. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. Some states, which have oxygen plants, are not allowing it to be supplied to other states. Strict action should be taken against such rogue states,” said Saket Tiku, president of All India Industrial Gases Manufacturers’ Association (AIIGM) and member of the central committee on oxygen supply.

Oxygen management is another big reason for the growing scarcity, he added. “There are states like Kerala and Maharashtra, which have very high active cases, but their oxygen management is best. Karnataka is also managing well, but there are guzzler states. The Centre should conduct a fair audit of oxygen use by all states,” he added. 

“The flow rate of oxygen should be monitored to know where we are going wrong,” Saket Tiku, president of AIIGM added.Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday chaired a meeting with chief ministers of various states and said that every state should ensure that no oxygen tanker, meant for any state, is stopped or gets stranded. He added that the Indian Railways and Indian

The IAF has been deployed to transport oxygen tankers so that states facing shortage of medical oxygen could get it in time. “The Indian Air Force, on April 21, airlifted doctors and nurses from Bengaluru, Kochi, Mumbai and Visakhapatnam for setting up of DRDO Covid hospital at Delhi,” said IAF spokesperson Wing Commander Ashish Moghe. “The IAF has also airlifted oxygen containers of DRDO for the Delhi centre,” he added.