To counter a third wave, Andhra hospitals get 144 oxygen plants

Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy inaugurated virtually the Pressure Swing Absorption (PSA) oxygen plants, which provide on-site medical-grade oxygen, and dedicated them to the nation.

In one of the biggest infrastructural upgrades since the second wave of Covid-19 last year, the Andhra Pradesh government on Monday, January 10, inaugurated 144 oxygen plants at various government hospitals in the state.

The Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy inaugurated virtually the oxygen plants, and dedicated them to the nation.

The Chief Minister said the government has been taking all measures to contain the virus ahead of the third wave. He said steps were being taken to achieve self-sufficiency in oxygen.

The oxygen plants have been set up at a cost of Rs 426 crore. The government is also providing a 30 per cent subsidy to private hospitals with more than 100-bed capacity to set up oxygen plants.

Last year, the government had decided to set up oxygen plants at 128 government hospitals having more than 50 beds as the second wave peaked amid an oxygen shortage 

Deputy Chief Minister (Health) A K Krishna Srinivas said the government had also purchased 25 cryogenic ISO oxygen containers for transporting liquid medical oxygen (LMO), along with 74 LMO tanks. 

“Oxygen supply pipelines have been set up to 24,419 beds in various government hospitals at a cost of Rs 90 crore and paediatric care units with 20 beds have been set up at community health centers.” Srinivas said.

The Deputy CM said, a genome sequencing lab has also been set up in Vijayawada, the second in the country after Kerala.

“Twenty state-of-the-art VRDL labs have been set up in the state, increasing the testing capacity from zero to one lakh tests per day,’’ Srinivas added.

Meanwhile, the Chief Minister said 80 per cent of people above 18 have received both doses of vaccine while in the 15-18 age group, 82 per cent were administered the first dose.

Andhra Pradesh stands as a role model to other states in terms of effective Covid containment, where over 33 door-to-door surveys were conducted, Reddy said.

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