Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan writes to PM, seeks 75 lakh vaccine doses, 1,000 MT liquid oxygen

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With the Covid-19 situation in the state turning critical, chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking 1,000 metric tonnes of liquid medical oxygen and 75 lakh vaccine doses -- 50 lakh Covishield and 25 lakh Covaxin doses -- to address the rising demand and depleting stock.
As many as 41,953 cases and 58 fatalities were reported in the state on Wednesday. The test positivity rate has also reached 25.69%.
Terming the situation as grave, the chief minister called for a heightened vigil. "The situation warrants more severe restrictions. However, there is no need to panic as we are in a position to manage the situation," he said.
Vijayan said the ward-level Covid committees and rapid response teams would be strengthened by incorporating medical students. All officials who had participated in the assembly election process will also be included in these committees. Steps will be taken to convert lodges and hostels as Covid first-line treatment centres while political parties, NGOs, overseas Malayalee associations and private agencies will be allowed to function as relief agencies, he said.
Earlier, the Union health ministry said19 states and Union Territories -- including Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Kerala, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, West Bengal and Rajasthan -- had a weekly positivity rate higher than the national average of 21.46%. It said nearly 71% of Covid cases registered in India in a day were also reported from these states.
In his letter to the Prime Minister, Vijayan said the overall projected requirement of liquid oxygen in the state was rising and the buffer storage within the state needed to be augmented urgently in view of the depletion of storage due to heavy daily demand. In order to augment the storage, the state requires at least 1,000 tonnes of imported liquid medical oxygen (LMO), he said.
The chief minister has requested that the ministry of external affairs may be advised to allot the required quantity partly from the current tranche of imports and balance from future imports. He also requested that the ministry be advised to allot 500 metric tonnes of LMO from the nearest steel plant to the state.
On vaccination, Vijayan said the Centre should take into account the number of persons awaiting the second dose of vaccines and those who have registered for the first dose while determining the further allotment to states. He requested that 50 lakh doses of Covishield and 25 lakh doses of Covaxin be allotted to the state.
The chief minister has also requested allotment of oxygen tankers, pressure swing adsorption (PSA) plants, oxygen concentrators and ventilators to the state on a priority basis considering that it has one of the highest active caseloads among the states. He also assured all support to the Centre in its fight against Covid besides appreciating its support to the state.
CM has also requested oxygen tankers on a priority basis