Mumbai: Western Railway’s oxygen plant for emergency Covid-19 patients starts at rail hospital

WR hopes to improve response to commuters through the command centre

The first of the two railway oxygen plants for emergency COVID-19 patients is up and running at the rail hospital at Mumbai Central. While this belongs to the Western Railway, the other at Byculla by Central Railway is still under works.

The oxygen plant at Mumbai Central started last week and is the seventh Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA) oxygen plant commissioned by Western Railway.

Sumit Thakur, WR's chief public relations officer, said, "The two oxygen plants commissioned with a capacity of 500 litres per minute (LPM) each will supply continuous oxygen to patients of Jagjivan Ram Hospital at Mumbai Central. The plants will produce oxygen with 93 per cent purity and serve as a secure and constant source of oxygen produced directly at the hospital."

"These PSA oxygen plants will prevent the shortage of oxygen during emergency situations, as seen in the COVID Pandemic. There are two plants, so one will provide backup to the other, to prevent a disaster during an emergency break down. The PSA plants have been installed at an approximate cost of R2 crore," he said.

WR's earlier plants were commissioned at Divisional Railway Hospitals at Sabarmati, Rajkot, Bhavnagar, Vadodara and Ratlam.

On Central Railway, oxygen plants have been planned at Dr BR Ambedkar hospital, Byculla in the city and at a railway hospital at Kalyan.

"The oxygen plant planned at Byculla is of 960 LPM, being built at a cost of Rs 94.40 lakh and the other at Kalyan is of 200 LPM, being built at a cost of Rs 38.50 lakh.

The other locations of oxygen plants on Central Railway include Nagpur, Solapur, Pune and Bhusawal," a CR spokesperson told mid-day.