CM Kejriwal writes SOS to CMs ,asking them to provide oxygen if they have any to spare
NEW DELHI : Amid a crippling shortage of medical oxygen in the national capital, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday wrote to all chief ministers, SOS to all chief ministers amid a crippling shortage of medical oxygen triggered by the massive coronavirus surge. He said he was writing to his counterparts seeking help to resolve the crisis by diverting spare oxygen to the national capital. “I am writing to all CMs requesting them to provide oxygen to Delhi, if they have spare. Though the Central govt. is also helping us, the severity of corona is such that all available resources are proving inadequate,” he tweeted.
Requesting them to provide spare oxygen to the city. “I am writing to all CMs requesting them to provide oxygen to Delhi, if they have spare. Though Central govt. is also helping us, the severity of corona is such that all available resources are proving inadequate,” tweeted CM Kejriwal. Kejriwal’s appeal comes amid an unprecedented crisis over oxygen supply as the second coronavirus wave ravages the country. Several hospitals treating Covid-19 patients in the Capital have said their oxygen supplies are dangerously low. Delhi hospitals appeal for assistance amid oxygen crisis.
Delhi, currently the worst-hit city, has been reporting over 20,000 daily Covid cases for the last few days. On Friday, it recorded the highest-ever 348 deaths in a day.Delhi’s over 90,000 active cases are exerting tremendous pressure on its health infrastructure. Acute shortages of medical oxygen, medicines and intensive care beds have been reported in the city.
“I would be grateful if you could provide us with any oxygen, along with tankers, from your state or any organization in your state. Kindly treat this as an SOS,” Mr Kejriwal wrote in the letter. Calling for a united front against the pandemic, Mr Kejriwal said the virus didn’t recognise borders. “We must also move beyond them and work together. We need to show the world what good and efficient governance looks like,” he added.
Few hospitals in Delhi are advising relatives to shift their patients to another facility, while several others have been left with no option but to use their backup stock. “We had been allotted 3.5 metric tonnes of oxygen from the government. The supply was to reach us by 5 in the evening, but it reached around midnight. By then, 25 patients had died,” Dr DK Baluja, Medical Director at Jaipur Golden Hospital, told.
The centre had last week increased Delhi’s oxygen quota to 480 metric tones. The Delhi government today told the High Court that the medical system in the national capital would collapse if it didn’t receive the promised amount of the live-saving gas. Earlier this week, the court had asked the center to provide the required amount of oxygen to Delhi. “Beg, borrow or steal,” the judges had said, warning that “all hell would break loose” if hospitals ran out of oxygen.
In a meeting of chief ministers with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday, Mr Kejriwal had warned that a “big tragedy” could happen because of the oxygen shortage. He had also said that some states were stopping tankers carrying oxygen to Delhi. PM Modi later appealed to all states to fight the pandemic together. He also said no states should stop oxygen supply meant for other states.
In fact, the GTB Hospital and Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital in Delhi slashed the number of beds for Covid-19 patients by half on Saturday, citing an acute shortage of medical oxygen. Doctors from across Delhi have been sending out SOS messages on social media signalling a near-breakdown of the healthcare infrastructure.
(With Media Reports).
