India reports 3,92,488 new Covid-19 cases, 3,689 deaths and 3,07,865 discharges in the last 24 hours of this Saturday. Also India records its highest death rate in a single day of 3,700 deaths. Clearly we are not in complete control over the corona and we have to do all we can to stop it. But are we really doing it? As for Delhi, 8 people have lost their lives just because there was lack of proper communication between the central and state government as stated by the high court of Delhi.
The High court of Delhi has ordered 490 metric tons of oxygen from central to be sent to Delhi within the 20th of April. But the central government failed to reach those demands. As the court said, water is above the head, 8 people have died, we cannot have our eyes shut.
The oxygen crisis in Delhi has been heard since the start of this 2nd wave corona and it’s sad to mention that it’s demands were not reached till now by the central government. Central shows their deaf ears towards the State from the start.
Court also ordered the state for proper enquiry of bed. Even though there are plenty of beds in the state, the bed requirement is still an issue. So it is to be observed if a patient stays in bed for more than 8-10 days and if the patient is alright to be discharged he must be discharged immediately to reach the requirement.
The 8 people’s death was due to lack of oxygen at that time in Batra hospital. It’s really unluckiest to die in this crisis since they were in hospital. The central failure caused death. The Delhi court demanded that the demands should be reached to the ground or else the high court will be forced to contempt of court proceeding against the central government.
The demand for oxygen in the country is a major issue. The demand for oxygen in India is high among the underdeveloped and developing countries according to the PATH oxygen need tracker.
Demand is growing between 6-8% each day according to the PATH.
People gasping for air in the street like “fish out of water” as stated by Dr Harjit Singh Bhatti, who works on a Covid ward of Delhi’s Manipal Hospital, described after watching.
“They are not getting oxygen and they are dying on the roads,” he said.
Generally, healthcare facilities consume about 15% of oxygen supply in India, leaving the rest for industrial use.
But amid India’s second wave, nearly 90% of the country’s oxygen supply – 7,500 metric tonnes daily – is being diverted for medical use, according to source.
Many countries are coming forward to help India in this crisis. Russia has sent two aircraft filled with oxygen concentrators, ventilators and other medical supplies. Our Arab friend UAE has sent 157 ventilators, 480 BiDAP and with other medical needs. The UK has sent 120 oxygen concentrators.
We are struggling, Yes! But we can do a lot better if we join together to fill in the requirements of all states and save innocent lives. And to hope that our central would be awake from now on.
Picture Credits: BBC
