104 O2 cylinders went missing from Sanjay Nagar district hospital during peak of 2nd Covid wave

More than 100 oxygen cylinders meant for Covid-19 patients were allegedly stolen from Sanjay Nagar District Combined Hospital (SNDCH) during the peak of the second wave of the pandemic

More than 100 oxygen cylinders meant for Covid-19 patients were allegedly stolen from Sanjay Nagar District Combined Hospital (SNDCH) during the peak of the second wave of the pandemic. Police have booked some unidentified persons based on the hospital authorities’ complaint, and an investigation is underway.

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The hospital -- an L2 category facility -- dealt with patients having moderate Covid-19 symptoms and had used 60 oxygen cylinders per day between April 11 and May 11 this year.

“On June 8, 2021, our nursing staff said that 104 oxygen cylinders, including 82 D-type and 22 B-type, went missing from the hospital. We formed a committee of five officers immediately to probe the incident. It also came to light that an oxygen supply vendor had not returned 49 oxygen cylinders, and attendants of patients allegedly took away the remaining 55 cylinders amidst the mad rush in the hospital from mid of April... We have decided to uphold a payment of ₹3 lakh to the oxygen supply vendor,” said Dr Sanjay Teotia, chief medical superintendent, SNDCH.

“We have hospital marking on our oxygen cylinders and are numbered in an order. Following an FIR, an oxygen vendor returned 49 old and worn-out oxygen cylinders, without our marking. The remaining 55 cylinders are still missing, and we suspect that attendants of patients may have taken those away. Now, it is up to the police to recover the missing cylinders and take action against the suspects,” he added.

The hospital filed a police complaint on Thursday (August 26), and an FIR was lodged against unidentified persons under Indian Penal Code (IPC) Section 380 (theft) the same day at the Madhuban Bapudham police station. The hospital authorities have also written a letter to additional chief secretary (health), director general (medical health), divisional health officials and district officials on this matter.

“During the second Covid-19 wave, the hospital was equipped with CCTVs, and common people were also abstained from entering the premises. The oxygen cylinder stock and other equipment are the responsibility of the hospital. If they suspected that attendants of patients were stealing oxygen cylinders, they should have reported the incident immediately. The incident will be investigated thoroughly,” said a senior health department official, requesting anonymity.

Nipun Agarwal, superintendent of police (city 1), said, “We have lodged an FIR based on a complaint filed by the hospital authorities. We will investigate the case thoroughly.”

Meanwhile, the 100-bed hospital installed two new oxygen plants of 150 litres per minute (LPM) and 500 LPM, with centralised oxygen supply, in August.