Revealing that Karnataka has requested the Centre to allocate as much oxygen as possible for the state, Health and Medical Education Minister Dr K Sudhakar on Tuesday urged the Centre to allow states to utilise locally-produced oxygen to overcome the ongoing second wave of the coronavirus pandemic.
Speaking to mediapersons in Bengaluru, Dr K Sudhakar said, "The Centre has sent 120 tonnes of LMO in six containers. The Centre has cooperated with the state in every possible way. If we are allowed to utilise the oxygen produced within our own state, there will not be any transportation issues. If a train is deployed, it takes four days to reach here. We have explained this issue to the Union Railway Minister and I hope that this will be resolved soon."
The minister further revealed that an additional 125 to 150 tonnes of medical oxygen will be allocated to Karnataka soon.
Commenting on the oxygen situation across Karnataka, the minister said, "We have been supplying oxygen keeping in mind the number of active cases and demand. Officials at the district level are constantly updating us about the situation. We are giving 30 ventilators to Dakshina Kannada district, which already has about 150 ventilators. Similarly, 50 ventilators will be sent to Hassan."
Stating that cooperation from the public is necessary to reduce the Covid caseload, Dr Sudhakar said, "It would at least take 14 days to reduce the caseload and people must cooperate during this hour of crisis by enforcing self-restraint and staying indoors."
(Published 11 May 2021, 09:07 IST)
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