Uttar Pradesh receives largest oxygen consignment amid surge in COVID-19 cases

Uttar Pradesh received its biggest consignment of oxygen amid the oxygen crisis due to COVID-19. 600 tonnes of lifesaving gas reached UP out of that 321 tons of medical was oxygen supplied by the Food and Drug Administration.

Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh on Thursday (April 29) has received its biggest consignment of oxygen - 600 tonnes of lifesaving gas, up from an average of 100-150 tonnes - ending the oxygen emergency for the time being.

Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Avanish Awasthi said, "This includes 321 tons of medical oxygen supplied by the Food and Drug Administration. We also have an allocation of 850 tons of oxygen from the Centre, which is the highest allotment among all states.

"However, to pick up our quota from other states like Bihar, we need more tankers. Earlier, we had only 30-35 tankers, but there are 84 in the fleet now."

The state has also activated its oxygen monitoring system, which is a first-of-its-kind 24x7 oxygen-tracking module that enables real-time monitoring of GPS-fitted tankers by district magistrates.

"We will provide police escort to tankers where possible and open a green corridor for quick transport," said the official.

The monitoring system was set up by Rodic Consultants Pvt Ltd in collaboration with the Food and Drug Administration, the department of medical education, the department of medical health and family welfare, and the department of transport and home affairs.

The oxygen control room will provide minute-by-minute information on oxygen demand in hospitals in various districts, allotment, and loading of oxygen in vehicles, live location of vehicles, supply and utilization of oxygen.

Pressure-swing absorption medical oxygen generation plants are being installed in more than 13 medical colleges and institutes across the state.

Oxygen-producing plants are also being installed at private medical colleges and institutes. Some of the state-run medical colleges, where these plants are being set up, are in Banda, Azamgarh, Bahraich, Basti, Jalaun, and Ayodhya.

Under the PM CARES Fund, plants are also being set up in Ambedkar Nagar, Saharanpur, Badaun, and Firozabad.

To further boost oxygen supply in the state, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has given directions to set up generator plants in nine state-run medical colleges and institutes, for which funds have been released from State Disaster Relief Fund.