COVID-19 crisis: Respite for Delhi as hospitals get oxygen supply amid shortage

Delhi finally heaved a sigh of relief on Tuesday night as its dwindling oxygen supply was replenished in the eleventh hour. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Health Minister Satyendar Jain had made desperate appeals to the Centre to provide the national capital with oxygen amid unprecedented rise in coronavirus cases. Sir Ganga Ram Hospital and Guru Teg Bahadur (GTB) Hospital received fresh stock hours before running out. Max Hospital, Patparganj also received a consignment early Wednesday morning.

Ganga Ram received 14,000 cubic metres of oxygen in two separate late night and early morning consignments. This is believed to hold the hospital for a day or two.

GTB Hospital received a tanker at 1:30 am on Wednesday. Oxygen stock in the hospital was not expected to last beyond 2 am. More than 500 critical COVID-19 patients admitted in the hospital were on oxygen support. Satyendar Jain had appealed to the Centre to restock the hospital.

A consignment in Max Hospital arrived at 8 am on Wednesday. Of the 300 patients in the hospital, 200 are on oxygen support.

"Serious oxygen crisis persists in Delhi. I again urge centre to urgently provide oxygen to Delhi. Some hospitals are left with just a few hours of oxygen," CM Kejriwal had tweeted.

The Delhi High Court intervened on Monday and asked suppliers not to divert stocks to other states. The Delhi government had told the court that the main vendor for the state's hospitals, Inox, was moving its quota to Uttar Pradesh. The Centre has, meanwhile, assured the states of all help required.

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