Ludhiana, May 6

Two officials — Udeydeep Singh Sidhu, Director, Lotteries, and HS Negi, State Tax Officer (Audit Wing), nominated as nodal officers, have been sent to Bokaro (Jharkhand) for smooth procurement of medical oxygen. The officials will be stationed at Bokaro till further orders.

An official with the state government said these officials had been sent for getting hastle-free oxygen from Jharkhand. “We are air lifting two tankers daily and sending them to Bokaro and then bringing them back with oxygen by road. Till now, the state government has procured about 250 MT of oxygen from there. The state government has asked the Centre to provide more tankers to send them to Jharkhand,” said the official.

About 250-260 MT of oxygen is needed daily and the state has no stocks. Any interruption in the supply can put Punjab in trouble. Meanwhile, Vardhman Industries has also started its oxygen generation plant. MD Sachit Jain said: “Around 2,000 cylinders are being supplied daily.” — TNS