Mayor takes stock of the situation and asks civic officials to resolve the problem on an emergency basis
Workers seen refilling oxygen cylinders at a private gas company in Mahalakshmi on Saturday. Pic/Ashish Raje
The situation of shortage of oxygen cylinders in the city is getting grimmer by the day. After the dearth was reported at one of the city’s civic-run hospitals on Friday, it has now come to the fore that five other corporation hospitals are facing the same problem.
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On Saturday, city mayor Kishori Pednekar took stock of the situation and issued various directives to the civic administration, asking officials to resolve the problem on an emergency basis. She also added that a permanent solution be found for this issue.
About 168 patients were shifted to various other civic hospitals and Jumbo centres owing to the shortage of oxygen supply. According to BMC health committee chairperson, Rajul Patel, who was also present with the mayor, around 44 patients (38 in isolation ward and six in ICU) were shifted from Govandi’s Shatabdi Hospital to Mulund Jumbo Centre and other hospitals in the area. Furthermore, 43 patients (36 in isolation ward and seven in ICU) were shifted from Bhagwati Hospital to Shatabdi Hospital in Kandivli and Dahisar Jumbo Centre. Patients from Kurla and Bandra were also shifted to BKC Jumbo Centre, Rajawadi Hospital and Nair Hospital. While the Bhabha Hospital in Kurla shifted 35 patients (28 in isolation ward and seven in ICU), the Bhabha Hospital in Bandra shifted about 18 patients (13 in isolation ward and five in ICU). In addition to these, five ICU patients were also moved from Jogeshwari Trauma Care Hospital to NESCO Jumbo Centre.
Addressing the press, Pednekar said, “Owing to non-supply of oxygen cylinders in concerned hospitals, there has been a shortage of oxygen for a long time. Therefore, patients in the ICU along with others who are on oxygen support have been shifted to Jumbo COVID Centres and other hospitals. Suppliers have said that the production of oxygen was low due to a shortage of raw materials.”
Additional Municipal Commissioner, Suresh Kakani, said, “As a precautionary measure, we have shifted patients to centres, where the oxygen supply is adequate.” The mayor has directed officials to start the process of setting up oxygen capsule plants at Shatabdi Hospital in Govandi immediately.
‘PM couldn’t talk about oxygen’
Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray told industry captains that he tried contacting PM Narendra Modi on Friday evening to register the state’s growing demand for oxygen, but couldn’t get through because “the PM was busy in West Bengal elections”. Thackeray appealed to industry associations to make oxygen available. “Currently, the entire oxygen production is used for medical purposes. Considering the rise in active patients, the state will need more supply. I have communicated this to the PM. But we couldn’t talk because he was busy with the WB polls,” he said. - Dharmendra Jore
168
No of patients shifted from BMC hospitals to other centres
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