JOIN USCovid-19 crisis: Reduce our oxygen quota, Delhi tells Centre as cases decline
After a bitter war over oxygen supply earlier this month, the Delhi government on Thursday asked the Centre to reduce its oxygen quota due to declining number of Covid-19 cases and subsequent hospitalisation and instead give it to needy states.
Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said oxygen requirement in the national capital has fallen to 582 MT, as against the previous allocation of 700 MT. Despite the Supreme Court's instructions, he said 700 MT of oxygen were given to Delhi only once.
"The Centre should provide the surplus oxygen from Delhi’s allocated quota to other states who need it," Sisodia said during a digital address.
Taking into account the number of cases, hospitalisation and criticality, the Centre allocates oxygen to each state. Delhi had accused the Centre of not providing enough oxygen when people were scrambling to arrange oxygen cylinders for patients.
Sisodia said the cases were at the peak during the last week of April and first week of May. On a daily basis, more than 80,000 tests were being conducted, out of which around 27,000 were testing positive.
"Positivity rate had risen to 32% during that period. But now, the positivity rate has reduced to around 14%, and 10,400 new cases have been recorded in the last 24 hours. The oxygen demand was directly proportional to the increase in cases. During the peak time, Delhi needed 700 MT of oxygen daily," he said.
On Thursday, Delhi recorded 10,849 Covid-19 cases out of the 73,675 tests conducted. Positivity rate was 14.24% and active cases stood at 77,717. However, deaths continued to be over the 300-mark -- there were 308 deaths reported in Thursday's bulletin.
"During the peak period, we were getting regular SOS calls from hospitals. Now, we receive 1-2 SOS calls daily, which are fulfilled without any delay. The Delhi government is a responsible government; hence, it is requesting the Centre to reduce the daily oxygen allocation. This way, the other states in need of oxygen can get the surplus," he added.