MP High Court asks Centre, Shivraj Singh Chouhan to ensure seamless transport of oxygen after tanker stopped in UP

NEW DELHI: Taking strong note of the acute shortage of oxygen by hospitals in the state, the Madhya Pradesh High Court on Monday (April 26) reprimanded the central government as well as the Shivraj Singh Chouhan-led government in the state and instructed them to ensure seamless transportation of oxygen. The court also asked the Centre to file a reply in the next hearing on April 28. 

According to reports, the double bench of Chief Justice Mohammad Rafiq and Justice Atul Sreedharan showed great resentment against the central government after hearing three petitions simultaneously. The Madhya Pradesh High Court also ordered that the Center should ensure that no one can stop the oxygen of any state from now on.

The High Court statement came after an oxygen tanker headed for Madhya Pradesh's Sagar was stopped by Uttar Pradesh officials between Modinagar and Jhansi on Sunday. The tanker which started from Bokaro, Jharkhand, was stopped at Fatehpur NH 1. It was destined to reach Sagar. However, due to the unavailability of oxygen supply on time, a patient died at the Sagar hospital.

Reprimanding the central government, the Madhya Pradesh High Court observed that it is their responsibility to ensure that every state is getting an uninterrupted supply of oxygen. The court further instructed that such incidents should not take place in future. The court also instructed the state to take stringent action against those involved in black-marketing of Remdesivir. 

The High Court noted that the Madhya Pradesh government and the central government should present a progress report in the next hearing on April 28, of the steps taken so far in pursuance of the instructions issued earlier.