<p>When an auto-rickshaw driver Mohammad Javed Khan saw people carrying their coronavirus-stricken parents to hospitals on their backs as they were too poor to afford an ambulance, he knew he had to help.</p>.<p>Khan, a 34-year-old driver in the central Indian city of Bhopal, sold his wife's jewellery and converted his three-wheeled vehicle into a small ambulance, fitting it out with an oxygen cylinder, an oximeter to measure oxygen levels in the blood, and other medical supplies.</p>.<p>As India grapples with a harrowing Covid-19 crisis that has seen infections skyrocket and the healthcare system stretched to breaking point, individuals like Khan have stepped forward to try and help their local communities.</p>.<p><a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/tag/coronavirus" target="_blank"><strong>CORONAVIRUS SPECIAL COVERAGE ONLY ON DH</strong></a></p>.<p>"A critically ill patient cannot be brought to the hospital without oxygen support. So, I thought, why not turn my three-wheeler into an ambulance. It's not as spacious as an ambulance, but it can surely save lives," Khan told <em>AFP</em>.</p>.<p>"I see young people struggling without oxygen. Even when they call ambulances, the ambulances are charging Rs 5,000-10,000. How will a poor person be able to afford it? Especially during this pandemic when most people don't have an income?"</p>.<p>A donor provided him with a cylinder and another with the oximeter.</p>.<p>A doctor taught Khan how to use the cylinder and oximeter to safely supply the lifesaving gas to patients as he drove them to a hospital.</p>.<p>"Many people have come forward to help me with donations and have requested me to continue driving around until the pandemic is over," he said.</p>.<p>"It is thanks to the help of so many people, I am able to do this. I couldn't have done this on my own."</p>.<p>Khan briefly ran into trouble with the authorities when police charged him for operating his auto-rickshaw without an emergency permit during Madhya Pradesh state's virus lockdown, <em>India Today</em> reported.</p>.<p>But after an outcry on social media, police withdrew the charges and issued him with a special pass, the broadcaster added.</p>.<p>Madhya Pradesh, like many other states, has witnessed a spike in cases in recent weeks that had led to shortages of oxygen and other critical medical supplies.</p>.<p>Crematoriums and burial grounds have also struggled to cope with the influx of bodies.</p>.<p>The state reported more than 12,000 new infections on Monday, with one in five people tested receiving positive results.</p>
<p>When an auto-rickshaw driver Mohammad Javed Khan saw people carrying their coronavirus-stricken parents to hospitals on their backs as they were too poor to afford an ambulance, he knew he had to help.</p>.<p>Khan, a 34-year-old driver in the central Indian city of Bhopal, sold his wife's jewellery and converted his three-wheeled vehicle into a small ambulance, fitting it out with an oxygen cylinder, an oximeter to measure oxygen levels in the blood, and other medical supplies.</p>.<p>As India grapples with a harrowing Covid-19 crisis that has seen infections skyrocket and the healthcare system stretched to breaking point, individuals like Khan have stepped forward to try and help their local communities.</p>.<p><a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/tag/coronavirus" target="_blank"><strong>CORONAVIRUS SPECIAL COVERAGE ONLY ON DH</strong></a></p>.<p>"A critically ill patient cannot be brought to the hospital without oxygen support. So, I thought, why not turn my three-wheeler into an ambulance. It's not as spacious as an ambulance, but it can surely save lives," Khan told <em>AFP</em>.</p>.<p>"I see young people struggling without oxygen. Even when they call ambulances, the ambulances are charging Rs 5,000-10,000. How will a poor person be able to afford it? Especially during this pandemic when most people don't have an income?"</p>.<p>A donor provided him with a cylinder and another with the oximeter.</p>.<p>A doctor taught Khan how to use the cylinder and oximeter to safely supply the lifesaving gas to patients as he drove them to a hospital.</p>.<p>"Many people have come forward to help me with donations and have requested me to continue driving around until the pandemic is over," he said.</p>.<p>"It is thanks to the help of so many people, I am able to do this. I couldn't have done this on my own."</p>.<p>Khan briefly ran into trouble with the authorities when police charged him for operating his auto-rickshaw without an emergency permit during Madhya Pradesh state's virus lockdown, <em>India Today</em> reported.</p>.<p>But after an outcry on social media, police withdrew the charges and issued him with a special pass, the broadcaster added.</p>.<p>Madhya Pradesh, like many other states, has witnessed a spike in cases in recent weeks that had led to shortages of oxygen and other critical medical supplies.</p>.<p>Crematoriums and burial grounds have also struggled to cope with the influx of bodies.</p>.<p>The state reported more than 12,000 new infections on Monday, with one in five people tested receiving positive results.</p>