Oxygen shortage kills 26 in Goa hospital in four hours; CM, Health Minister bicker

Goa Health Minister Vishwajit Rane claimed there was no mismanagement on the hospital's part

Oxygen shortage led to 26 deaths in four hours at the Goa Medical College, the state's top government hospital, in the early hours of Tuesday.

Health Minister Vishwajit Rane has now sought a probe into the deaths by the Bombay High Court bench in Panaji. "I request the High Court to check if there is mismanagement or shortage and bring out a white paper using experts... High Court should take over Covid management of GMC," Rane told reporters.

According to the Health Minister, between 2 am and 6 am on Tuesday, 26 persons lost their lives and added that while there was no mismanagement, the hospital had not received an adequate supply of oxygen.

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"We need 1,200 (jumbo) cylinders, but yesterday we got only 400," Rane said. A jumbo cylinder contains 46.67 litres of oxygen per unit.

This is in contradiction with Chief Minister Pramod Sawant's statements on Tuesday when he visited the Covid ward at the college to meet anxious patients and their families.

Sawant had told reporters that there was no oxygen shortage at the facility, and that deaths were caused as cylinders in stock could not be ferried to the patients in time, suggesting mismanagement of resources at the hospital.

"We have 100 per cent oxygen, but I am thinking now that we are unable to get the oxygen to patients on time. We have abundant oxygen, but if cylinders are not given in time, there is no point in having oxygen (stock). The time taken to get the cylinders in place is important," Sawant said. Patients and their kin complained to Sawant about the sudden unavailability of oxygen at the hospital, especially late at night.

Sawant said that he would address the issue within "one day". He is expected to meet top health officials and those in-charge of the Goa Medical College for a meeting later tonight to resolve the issue.

"I will not tolerate a single death due to lack of oxygen," Sawant said, while also warning the Scoop Industrial Private Limited, the sole supplier of oxygen to the Goa Medical College, against any laxities.

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The last few weeks have seen Sawant and Rane politically sparring with each other over the issue of Covid management. The conflict between the two has forced the opposition to urge the ruling politicians to bury their differences in the fight against Covid. Two weeks ago, the Chief Minister had taken charge of oxygen management at the medical college, divesting responsibility from the Health Minister, after similar complaints had emerged from the hospital.

"How many more #CovidDeaths @BJP4Goa Govt. need to realise where the mismanagement is taking place?" Leader of Opposition Digambar Kamat said after the deaths.

Goa is facing an unprecedented Covid surge over the last two months. The state currently has 32,262 active Covid cases, 1,729 persons have died in the state since the pandemic outbreak.