India Increases States’ Oxygen Quota As COVID-19 Cases Spike

As the demand for oxygen grows in the worst-hit COVID-19 states, India’s federal health ministry has announced an increase in quota for several states, officials said on Thursday.

The decision was taken in view of an exponential rise in the number of COVID-19 patients that in turn increased demand for oxygen in the hospitals.

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“Oxygen demand and supply is being monitored round the clock.“To address the exponential spike in demand, the Centre (Federal Government) has increased the quota of Oxygen for Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Delhi,” federal Health Minister, Harsh Vardhan, said.

On Wednesday, 24 COVID-19 patients died in Maharashtra’s Nashik after an oxygen tanker leaked outside a hospital, disrupting supply to patients for around 30 minutes.

In wake of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, hospitals across India have been reporting a shortage of oxygen supply and urged the federal government to replenish their stocks.

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The Indian government has decided to run special trains to ferry oxygen and import 50,000 MT of medical oxygen to augment its availability in the country.

India on Thursday reported the world’s biggest-ever daily surge with 314,835 new cases and 2,104 deaths in the past 24 hours.

Reports said this was the fastest rise in cases and deaths any country has suffered until now since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.