Five industrial tankers converted to transport oxygen, sent to Odisha plant

The regional transport authority (RTA), in a bid to smoothen oxygen supply in the district, converted five nitrogen and argon tankers into oxygen tankers to enable transportation of oxygen from a plant in Rourkela of Odisha

The regional transport authority (RTA), in a bid to smoothen oxygen supply in the district, converted five nitrogen and argon tankers into oxygen tankers to enable transportation of oxygen from a plant in Rourkela of Odisha.

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Dhaarna Yadav, secretary, RTA, Gurugram, said that the tankers are owned by private companies that supply nitrogen and argon to factories and private industries. “These tankers were sent to the Panipat industrial area and were converted by an agency overnight. It took six hours to get them cleaned and nozzles were changed to equip them to carry oxygen. A special team was deployed at Panipat cleaning station to check the oxygen level and pressure in these tankers for uninterrupted supply,” she said.

Yadav said these tankers were sent to Rourkela by train from the Faridabad railway station and will return late Saturday or Sunday, with a supply of nearly 50 metric tonnes (MT) of oxygen supply.

At present, the district requires 70 MT of oxygen. Officials said that the 50 MT, coupled with the supply from plants in Bhiwadi and Panipat will ensure a smooth supply of oxygen to all hospitals.

Several private hospitals in the city are facing an acute shortage of oxygen, as reported by HT over the past few days. Hospitals also took to social media over the past few days to send out distress calls to the district administration, to help them get oxygen.

As the district is facing an oxygen shortage amid a massive surge in Covid-19 cases, the district administration is trying to arrange oxygen from other states. Officials said that a green corridor will be created from the Faridabad railway station to Gurugram to facilitate the movement of these tankers, along with a police escort.

Yadav said they are coordinating with the Rourkela administration to ensure there is no delay in loading and transporting oxygen to Gurugram. “We have intensified our focus on transporting oxygen, which is a key challenge. The conversion of tankers for oxygen will increase the oxygen supply and the demands are likely to be met. We are also trying to arrange oxygen from other places to ensure regular supply for the private hospitals,” she said.

Additional chief secretary TC Gupta on Tuesday formed a team of five officials to assess demand for oxygen, its transportation and distribution. The commissioner of Municipal Corporation of Gurugram, (MCG) Vinay Pratap Singh, was appointed as the team leader along with additional deputy commissioner Prashant Pawar, deputy civil surgeon Anuj Garg and RTA secretary, Dhaarna Yadav. Amandeep Chauhan, the district drug controller, was designated the coordinator.