BMC hopeful of 16 oxygen generation plants to be ready by August, refilling station at Mahalaxmi expected to be ready by the start of July
Oxygen cylinders being taking for refilling in Kurla. File pic
In the backdrop of the anticipated third Covid-19 wave and the worries over the Delta Plus variant, the civic body fast-tracked its work on oxygen supply.
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It is hopeful about oxygen generation plants getting set up and being ready for use by August, and about an oxygen refilling station getting set up by the start of next month.
A liquid medical oxygen plant at the NESCO Jumbo Covid-19 centre. The BMC has floated tenders to set up generation plants at jumbo centres too. File pic
The BMC also plans to set up plants at jumbo Covid-19 centres, the tenders for which have already been floated. The tender is estimated to be around Rs 300 crore. All existing and new centres under development will get oxygen generation plants.
After facing an oxygen shortage during the second wave and having to shift patients from one hospital to another, the civic body is setting up 16 oxygen generation plants at nine hospitals. The installation work for the same has started and is expected to be complete in a month.
Once contractors are appointed, jumbo centres, too, will be able to handle the oxygen load on their own. A civic official said that a contractor will be finalised soon and the work will be for a year’s time, unlike at the hospitals where the contract will be of five years.
The refilling station for Dura cylinders at Mahalaxmi, where approximately 40 to 45 such cylinders can be filled per day, too, is almost ready and the BMC is currently waiting for PESO certifications.
According to officials, the certification is likely to come in by early next week. One Dura cylinder can store 175 cubic meters, which is almost 1.75 lakh litres, of oxygen.
A civic official not willing to be named, said, “We are planning as much as possible to ensure there is no shortage of oxygen supply in the city. We have even fast-tracked all our projects so that they can be made operative before the arrival of the third wave.”
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