Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 7

Now, state residents can get their oxygen cylinders refilled at their doorstep, with the facility being introduced from Sunday. For this, the patient or their family will have to apply online.

Additional Principal Secretary to Chief Minister Amit Agrawal presided over a meeting with the nodal officers of the district and secretaries of the District Red Cross Society in this regard on Friday, where he issued the necessary guidelines.

Addressing the nodal officers and Red Cross secretaries through videoconferencing, Agrawal said it was a crisis situation and we all have to render our services in the same manner as a soldier performs during a war situation. He said in this mid of crisis, many Covid patients were home isolated and there were many suffering from other diseases and required oxygen.

“With the introduction of the facility of refilling oxygen cylinders at home, such patients will be highly benefitted and their families will not have to stand in queues for long hours. It will also curb black marketing. Moreover, with many people getting cylinders at home, hospital beds with oxygen support will be available for high-risk Covid patients.”

Meanwhile, Agrawal further directed all officers concerned to discuss the task with the DCs in the district for refilling cylinders and set a location. They have also been told to make a bank of empty cylinders so that whichever patient requires refilling, the volunteers should exchange it with a filled one. He has also directed them to fix the minimum price (if needed) at their level.

HOW TO APPLY

• Register on oxygenhry.in
• After having registered, applications will be reflected in NGO and Red Cross Society sections
• If either of the two accepts the request, the applicant will receive details via an SMS

MANDATORY DETAILS NEEDED

• The applicant will have to upload the photo of the oxygen level in the oximeter and Aadhaar number
• It is mandatory to write the age and address of the patient on the portal
• An application can be made only once a day from a mobile number

1 held for selling cylinders in black

• A man has been arrested from Faridabad district on the charges of black marketing oxygen cylinders
• In all, 50 cylinders have been recovered from the accused, identified as Bijendra
• When asked, the accused failed to produce any licence and required permits for the oxygen cylinders
• On court orders, the cylinders have been handed over to the district administration
• During interrogation, Bijendra said while supplying the cylinders to hospitals, he used to take out some gas and sell it to the needy at hefty rates