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Business News/ News / India/  PM tells states to check hoarding and black marketing of oxygen, covid drugs
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PM tells states to check hoarding and black marketing of oxygen, covid drugs

The prime minister was chairing a high-level meeting on covid-19 situation with chief ministers of 11 states and Union territories which have reported maximum number of cases recently

The prime minister said that every state should ensure that no oxygen tanker is stopped or gets stranded. (PTI)Premium
The prime minister said that every state should ensure that no oxygen tanker is stopped or gets stranded. (PTI)

New Delhi: Amid shortage of medical oxygen in hospitals all across the country hindering treatment of covid-19 patients, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday urged states to check hoarding and black marketing of oxygen and medicines. The prime minister was chairing a high-level meeting on covid-19 situation with chief ministers of 11 states and Union territories which have reported maximum number of cases recently.

The prime minister said that every state should ensure that no oxygen tanker, meant for any state, is stopped or gets stranded. The PM urged states to set up a high-level co-ordination committee to carry oxygen to different hospitals of the state.

Taking note of the points raised by the states on oxygen supplies, Modi said there is a continuous effort to increase oxygen supply. All the concerned departments and ministries of the government are also working together. Industrial oxygen has also been diverted to meet immediate requirements, he said.

This coordination committee should ensure that as soon as there is allotment of oxygen from the Centre, it can deliver oxygen according to requirements of different hospitals of the state immediately.

“The central government is working on all possible options to reduce the travel time and turnaround time of oxygen tankers. For this, railways has started oxygen express trains. Empty oxygen tankers are also being transported by the air-force to reduce one way travel time," said Modi.

Noting that the virus is affecting several states as well as tier-II and tier-III cities at once, Modi assured the Centre’s full support to all the states in this fight. “The ministry of health is also in touch with the states and is monitoring the situation closely and issuing necessary advice to the states from time to time," he said, urging all states to work together and coordinate with one-another to fulfil requirements relating to medicines and oxygen.

“Along with resource upgradation, we have to focus on testing. Widespread testing should be conducted so that people get the facility easily," said Modi. “Our vaccination programme should not slow down in this situation," said Modi, highlighting that India is running the world’s largest vaccination programme, and so far more than 13 crore vaccine doses have been provided free of cost to the states by the government of India. The campaign launched by the central government to provide free vaccine to all citizens above 45 years, as well has healthcare workers and front line workers, will also continue in the same manner.

“From 1 May, the vaccine is going to be available to all citizens above 18 years of age. We will also need to work on a mission mode to get more and more people vaccinated," the prime minister said.

Earlier, a presentation was given by Dr V.K. Paul, which highlighted the preparations being done to counter the new surge of infections. Dr Paul also presented the roadmap for increasing the medical facilities and targeted treatment of patients. He spoke about boosting medical infrastructure, teams and supplies; clinical management; containment; vaccination and community engagement.

During the interaction, chief ministers of states briefed the prime minister about the steps being taken by respective state governments to counter the current wave. They also noted that the directions given by the prime minister and the road map presented by NITI would help them plan their responses in a better way.

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Published: 23 Apr 2021, 03:24 PM IST
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