E-Paper
Kejriwal sends an SOS to PM Modi, asks for more Covid-19 beds, oxygen
The Delhi chief minister also thanked PM Modi for instructing the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to set up 500 Covid-19 beds and asked for the numbers to be increased by 1000.
Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking more beds and oxygen for coronavirus disease patients as he said the Covid-19 situation in the national capital was "very serious”. In his letter to PM Modi, Kejriwal appealed regarding urgent supply of oxygen and allocation of more beds for Covid-19 patients in hospitals run by the central government. "The coronavirus situation in Delhi has become very serious. There is a severe shortage of corona beds and oxygen. Almost all the ICU beds are full. All of us are trying our level best but we need your help," Kejriwal wrote in the letter in Hindi.
"There are about 10,000 beds in central government hospitals in Delhi, out of which only 1800 beds are reserved for corona patients. We request to increase this to 7000 beds in view of the seriousness of the situation," he also said.
The Delhi chief minister also thanked PM Modi for instructing the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to set up 500 Covid-19 beds and asked for the numbers to be increased by 1000. "So far, there has been a lot of support from the central government in this pandemic. I hope that you will definitely help us on the relevant topics as well," Kejriwal said.
This comes as Delhi is battling with the fourth wave of the coronavirus pandemic, during which Covid-19 cases have risen multiple folds as the city broke records of daily cases reported in previous waves. On Saturday, Delhi logged 24,375 fresh cases of viral disease in the sharpest spike in a single day so far. It also reported 167 fatalities in the span of 24 hours, which pushed the death toll to nearly 12,000. On April 16, 19,486 Covid-19 cases and 141 related deaths were reported in the city.
Earlier in the day, Kejriwal said he has requested Union health minister Harsh Vardhan and home minister Amit Shah to increase the number of Covid-19 beds in hospitals under the central government. He also alerted the Centre that the shortage of beds and oxygen could trigger a major crisis any moment as the situation was deteriorating every passing second. "There are less than 100 ICU beds left in Delhi. We are facing a major shortage of oxygen too. Last night, a private hospital told us that they almost ran into a disaster situation last night with a major shortage of oxygen supply,” he said in a video conference.
"I have requested him (Shah) to reserve at least 7,000 beds for Covid-19. The situation in Delhi is deteriorating every second. I also requested that oxygen supply be provided to us immediately,” he added.
