SGPC seeks Punjab government’s intervention for regular supply of oxygen

While talking to Zee News on Wednesday (April 21) SGPC president Bibi Jagir Kaur expressed concern over poor supply of oxygen as well as COVID-19 vaccine.

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Chandigarh: While the district administration of holy city Amritsar claims to have sufficient stock of oxygen, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC ) and many private hospitals are crying foul over the poor supply of oxygen with SGPC taking up the issue with the Punjab government for the early restoration of normal supplies of medical essentials in wake of spike in  Covid 19 cases.

While talking to Zee News on Wednesday (April 21) SGPC president Bibi Jagir Kaur expressed concern over the poor supply of oxygen as well as COVID-19 vaccine at the SGPC-run Sri Guru Ram Das Medical College Vallah, Sri Guru Ram Das Charitable Hospital Amritsar, Baba Buddha Ji Hospital Bir Sahib etc.

"There is a big problem of oxygen for the treatment of corona patients for which the government should make sufficient arrangements and COVID-19 vaccine are also not fully available which could be a problem in future” she informed.

Kaur said that the matter had also been taken up with the Chief Secretary of the Punjab government.

Echoing similar views as Kaur’s, the managing director of Hartej Hospital, Dr. H S Nagpal also expressed concern over the poor supplies of medical oxygen and demanded from the government to ensure uninterrupted supply of medical oxygen in the city.

Amritsar civil surgeon Dr. Charnjit SIngh said that with the rationing of oxygen the district health authorities had been able to resolve the oxygen issue.

Zee News also came to know that a few rich people have already started purchasing oxygen concentrators, a domestic device that delivers the medical-grade oxygen to the patient after filtering the surrounding air and compressing it to the required density, the demand of which has led to their black marketing. 

A wholesaler in the medicine market Rajiv Kumar informed that the queries about the oxygen concentrators had suddenly gone up with many people ready to pay extra money to secure one for oxygen supply in case of exigency.

Kumar informed that an oxygen concentrator was being sold for around Rs 60000 which was nearly Rs 10000 above its print price. However, Dr Nagpal said they recommend the domestic oxygen concentrator to only those patients who were dependent on oxygen for two to four hours in a day.

Meanwhile, the district administration has geared itself to receive the Indian jatha that would be arriving home from Pakistan via Attari international border on Thursday. Deputy commissioner Gurpreet Singh Khera informed that all the Indian devotees would undergo Rapid Antigen Test at the border. Notably, there had been a spike in Covid 19 cases in Lahore where the Indian jatha is presently staying.