Oxygen units under PM-CARES yet to start operations in Karnataka

None of the six Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA) oxygen plants sanctioned to hospitals in Karnataka under the PM-CARES fund is operational yet, despite the hue and cry over the shortage being faced by Covid-19 patients.

The Health and Family Welfare Department said that the plants will be operational by the end of the month, even as activists decried the delay despite warnings of a second wave. According to the Department, 40 more oxygen units will come up in the state in the next three months as the state planned to ramp up facilities.

“The required equipment for installing the plants have already arrived and will be operational at the end of the month,” said a response by Health and Family Welfare Minister K Sudhakar’s office to DH, on the status of PSA oxygen plants in Karnataka.

The six plants with 100 litres per minute (lpm) capacity were sanctioned under PM-CARES to government hospitals in Pavagad (Tumakuru district), Shikaripur (Shivamogga), Mudhol (Bagalkot), Yellapur (Uttara Kannada), Chincholi (Kalaburagi) and Shorapur (Yadgir).

Deepak C N, general secretary of Karnataka Rashtra Samithi, said that the delay in installing the plants reflected the sad state of affairs over handling the pandemic.

“The central government should have sanctioned more, considering the second wave. Yet, even the ones sanctioned are not utilised,” he said, accusing the government of lacking concern for the health of the people.

Months after the first wave of Covid-19, tenders for 162 PSA plants for different hospitals in the country were invited in October last year by the Centre. Additional PSA plants were also announced earlier in April.

40 new units

Sudhakar’s office said that of the 40 new oxygen units proposed, 10 will be of 500 lpm capacity each, while 30 will be of 390 lpm capacity each.

The state has ramped up its oxygen storage capacity from 12 kilo litres last year. Now, Karnataka has 18 storage tanks of 6 kilo litres each, two tanks of 2 kilo litre capacity and seven tanks of one kilo litre capacity each.

A recent tweet by the Union Ministry of Health ran contrary to the statement by the state Health and Family Department regarding the status of PSA oxygen plants set up under PM-CARES fund.

The Centre had claimed that 33 of the 162 plants sanctioned were operational, which included “2 each in Bihar, Karnataka and Telangana”.