Oxygen shortage: Centre imports 20 cryogenic tankers, allocates them to states

NEW DELHI: The Centre has imported 20 cryogenic tankers of 10 MT and 20 MT capacity and allocated them to states to address the shortage of oxygen tankers in the country as it deals with spiralling cases of COVID-19.

As mapping of liquid medical oxygen (LMO) from manufacturing plants to different states is a dynamic process and transportation of medical oxygen through cryogenic tankers is becoming a bottleneck in making available LMO from the eastern part of the country to other parts, 20 cryogenic ISO containers of capacity 20 MT and 10 MT have been imported to augment the transportation of oxygen, the Union Health Ministry said on Tuesday.

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways in consultation with the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade under the overall guidance of the Empowered Group-II have mapped the allocation of these containers to suppliers in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Delhi, the ministry said in the statement.

India is struggling with a second wave of coronavirus infection and hospitals in several states are reeling under shortage of medical oxygen and beds in view of rising COVID-19 cases.