Arvind Kejriwal exhorts people to donate oximeters for villages

Digitally addressing AAP volunteers across the nation, Kejriwal said the Covid-19 situation of Delhi is under control, but the situation in other parts of the country, especially villages, is still bad.

Delhi chief minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday appealed to the public, members of the civil society and party workers across the nation to donate pulse oximeters to the AAP so it can set up ‘oxygen testing centres’ in rural India to reduce the number of Covid-19 deaths.

The AAP chief said he was concerned that over 60,000 fresh cases and around 800-1,000 deaths are being recorded in the country every day. (HT Photo)

Digitally addressing AAP volunteers across the nation, Kejriwal said the Covid-19 situation of Delhi is under control, but the situation in other parts of the country, especially villages, is still bad. Sunday being Kejriwal’s birthday, the chief minister appealed to AAP supporters to donate oximeters instead of sending him gifts. He also said AAP volunteers will be trained to check oxygen saturation levels in Covid-19 patients in these villages.

“I want to appeal to all the AAP volunteers, supporters, donors, and well-wishers of the country to help us. We are planning to distribute responsibilities among our volunteers of providing oximeters in villages. This is a private effort. The person responsible for oximeters in a village will send them to the houses of the people in need, and they can test their oxygen level. They can then get admitted to a nearby hospital if the Covid testing centre is at a distance,” Kejriwal said.

The AAP chief said he was concerned that over 60,000 fresh cases and around 800-1,000 deaths are being recorded in the country every day.

“I would not say that we have won the battle against Covid-19 in Delhi, but we are in a much better position today, compared to two months ago, which has reduced the fear among people. We have taken several measures—we created plasma banks, introduced home isolation, increased testing, and beds in Delhi. But the number of cases are steadily rising in the entire country,” he said.

“Every government, be it State or Centre, is addressing the situation in different ways. Now that Covid-19 is spreading in villages, it is a great matter of worry because, in the last 70 years, we have not been able to provide good healthcare facilities in our villages. It is easier to find doctors and hospitals in cities, but if Covid-19 spreads in villages, it will prove worrisome,” he said.

Kejriwal said that after launching home isolation in Delhi, his government learned a lot of lessons. “For example, of 10,000 cases, only 1,000 cases were serious (on an average) and we treated the remaining 9,000 cases at home. If we had admitted all the 10,000 cases to the hospital, we would have required 10,000 beds which were not available,” he said.

Along these lines, the AAP chief also suggested a three-step strategy that can be implemented in villages. “By implementing home isolation, asymptomatic people or people with mild symptoms will be treated at home. Second, if the village panchayat sends oximeters or oxygen cylinders to people’s houses, they can be saved if their oxygen levels fall,” Kejriwal said.

The AAP chief continued that the biggest problem with Covid-19 was the reduced oxygen levels, which result in the loss of life. He urged the public to donate as many oximeters as they could to the AAP so it could distribute them in villages.

“We will also set up oxygen testing centres in villages. We will train people on all precautions to take. We will explain how to wear a mask, sanitisation and other steps. First, if you want to donate oximeters to the Aam Aadmi Party, please contact us. And second, if you want to take the responsibility of your village, please let us know. All the state coordinators, district coordinators, please open as many oxygen testing centres in your villages as possible and try to save as many lives as possible,” he said.