Gurugram readies an ‘oxygen plan’ as hospitals face shortage

GURUGRAM: With several hospitals in the city facing an acute shortage of oxygen, the state government has reiterated that there is no shortage of life-saving gas in Haryana but it is deliberating on increasing the supply.
Meanwhile, the Gurugram administration has chalked out a plan to deal with any emergency situation, with the government increasing the district’s liquid oxygen quota to 35 tonnes from the existing 20 tonnes.
At a review meeting on Saturday, additional chief secretary TC Gupta, who is in charge of Covid management for Gurgaon, directed the executive magistrates and nodal officers appointed for each hospital to strictly enforce the government orders and ensure that every medical facility provides beds for the specified number of Covid patients and “that the needy patients can get beds”.
“I am in constant touch with senior officials of the Union government and the top management of the oxygen-producing companies to supply sufficient quantities of the life-saving gas to Gurgaon, so there is no need for anyone to panic about the supply,” Gupta said.
Gurgaon’s deputy commissioner Yash Garg said that the district administration has prepared a contingency plan to deal with any emergency situation, after assessing the demand and supply of oxygen in city hospitals.
“The plan also includes reserving 10 tonnes of oxygen for the city hospitals. The current crisis in the majority of the hospitals in the city is due to their private vendors, who have not assured the regular supplies of oxygen,” he said.
At the meeting, MCG commissioner Vinay Pratap Singh said about 100 beds have been arranged at SGT Medical College and 20 more will be added with oxygen and five with ventilators. “Efforts are being made to increase the number of beds in collaboration with corporates.”