Jalandhar Deputy Commissioner warns of action against those selling Oxygen gas in black

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, April 21

Deputy Commissioner Ghanshyam Thori on Wednesday urged all healthcare institutions to reserve at least 75 per cent of their bed capacity for Covid-19 patients to ensure that there was no shortage of beds in hospitals during the spike in cases.

While participating in a Covid-19 review meeting chaired by Chief Secretary Vini Mahajan, the Deputy Commissioner apprised the CS of the steps being taken by the administration to contain the spread of the virus. He said all the private hospitals were being asked to reserve 75 per cent of the total beds in their respective hospitals to deal with Covid-19 cases more effectively as elective surgeries were already asked to be put off till further orders.

The DC asked the hospitals to utilize oxygen concentrators to meet the requirement of this life-saving gas amid the pandemic. He said these concentrators would ensure adequate availability of oxygen for less serious patients in hospitals, thus enabling them to augment their oxygen capacity.

Meanwhile, he passed directions to conduct maximum testing and vaccination of patients visiting OPDs for general treatment as a huge number of potential virus carriers could be detected at these places.

The DC directed the authorities concerned to ensure oxygen supplies only to hospital and if, there was availability of oxygen after addressing the hospitals requirement, only then it would be supplied to industries that too with the written approval of Assistant Commissioner Hardeep Singh and Deputy Director, Local Bodies Department, Darbara Singh. He categorically stated that if any black marketing of oxygen gas was reported in the district, an FIR would be filed against the perpetrators.