MHA asks states to ensure free movement of oxygen carrying vehicles

September 18, 2020 22:01

The Union home ministry on Friday asked all states to ensure free movement of oxygen carrying vehicles without any restriction as medical oxygen is an important pre-requisite for managing moderate and severe COVID-19 cases.

In a communication to chief secretaries of all states and union territories, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla said it has come to the notice that some states are trying to curb inter-state movement of oxygen supplies from manufacturing units situated in their respective areas.

Some states are also mandating manufacturers and suppliers located in the state to restrict their oxygen supplies to the hospitals of the state, he said.

Bhalla said availability of adequate and uninterrupted supply of medical oxygen is an important pre-requisite for managing moderate and severe cases of COVID- 19 and with increasing number of active cases, the consumption of oxygen is also expected to increase.

He said it is emphasised that medical oxygen is an essential public health commodity and any impediment in the supply of medical oxygen in the country may critically impact the management of patients suffering from COVID-19 in other parts of the country.

State and union territories have been asked to ensure "no such restriction is imposed on the movement of medical oxygen between states and transport authorities shall be instructed to accordingly allow free inter-state movement of oxygen carrying vehicles", according to the communication.

It also said that no restrictions shall be imposed on oxygen manufacturers and suppliers to limit the oxygen supplies only to the hospitals of the state in which they are located and there shall be free movement of oxygen carrying vehicles into the cities, without any restriction of timings, while also enabling inter-city supply without restriction.

-- PTI

« Back to LIVE

TOP STORIES

Indian-origin student arrested for taking part in anti-Israel protests in US

Achinthya Sivalingam, born in Coimbatore and raised in Columbus, has been barred from the campus and faces disciplinary action, said a university spokesperson.

Laapataa Ladies Found On OTT!

From Vijay Devarakonda to Kung Fu Panda, Sukanya Verma lists everything you can watch on OTT this week.

'My husband slapped me'

rediffGURU Kanchan Rai, founder, Let Us Talk, offers advice on how to navigate life's problems.

SC rejects pleas on 100% EVM-VVPAT verification, paper ballot voting

Pronouncing the judgement, Justice Khanna said the court has rejected all the petitions, including those seeking resorting back to ballot papers in elections.

Above-normal monsoon likely to ease food prices: FinMin

With the prediction of an above normal monsoon in 2024, the government is expecting food prices to come down, the finance ministry's monthly economic report for March has said. The report, released on Thursday, said robust foreign...